


Number Four

by IngridAnne24



Category: Jane the Virgin (TV)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-02
Updated: 2016-10-09
Packaged: 2018-07-28 19:45:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 23,233
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7654306
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IngridAnne24/pseuds/IngridAnne24
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Petra and Jane consider having a fourth child.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So I've been writing this for weeks (on and off) and I was going to post this as one long thing, but it was taking forever, so I'll do it by chapter by chapter.
> 
> Also, I don't know how right the science of this will be. Bear with me.

Petra loved her children, she really did, but sometimes, it was too much. Sometimes she needed some time alone, sometimes she needed some time with her wife. But, other times, it felt pretty great, to be honest.

Mateo, who was now four, was a pretty rambunctious, but also very sweet little boy. He was very much Jane. He also got positive comments from his preschool class and Jane was extraordinarily proud. Petra was proud too, once she figured out the “grading” system in preschool.

Elsa, who was three, was also very smart and very introverted. She only spoke if she really had to, but she was turning out to be very sharp and quick-witted. Petra didn't admit it, but Elsa was a lot like herself.

Anna, sweet and loud Anna, dramatic Anna. The opposite of her sister. She was by no means dumb, but sometimes she liked to play ignorance, to avoid having to do something. Petra was pretty sure that was what she was doing.

Of course Jane took it all in stride. She was just a natural mother, even to Elsa and Anna. She figured out how to adjust to Elsa and Anna's unique individual natures and work around that, and the girls loved her.

Petra was doing much better than she was when the twins were born, but she would hardly call herself a natural mother. Sometimes she had to fight against her natural instincts, instincts that surely came from her own mother. Those instincts told her to be cold, to let the children figure out whatever problem they were having. And sometimes, she did do that, just with more warmth, but otherwise, she wanted the children to know she loved them. Growing up with a mother you can't tell if she loves you is not good.

It seemed to be going fine, a perfect life, until Jane asked Petra one day. Normally Jane asked questions with confidence, but the way she approached Petra, her eyes flickering around and avoiding meeting Petra's eyes, Petra knew something was up. For once, they were alone in the house, as Rafael and his wife had taken the kids out.

“Petra, there's something I want to ask you,” Jane said softly. She gently pulled Petra down onto the couch.

“Jane, what's wrong?” Petra asked. Whatever it was, Jane looked terrified.

“I want to have another baby,” Jane blurted out. She finally looked at Petra, her eyes wide. Petra's mouth fell open.

“Jane, uh, we have three kids.”

“I know, I know, but I feel like we could do four kids. The kids we have now are so great and I think they would love having a little sibling. I mean, Mateo was a baby when the twins were born so he doesn't remember that.”

“Rafael is sterile and there's no sperm left, Jane,” Petra said softly, despite the fact her heart was pounding.

“I know. There's other ways. We could adopt, or, find another sperm donor. Oh, oh, have your heard this thing where to get both mothers on a birth certificate they take the eggs from one woman, mix it with the sperm, and implant it into the other woman?”

“I have, but, Jane--”

“I miss having a baby, Petra,” Jane sighed. “The kids are getting so big.”

Petra closed her eyes. “I know. But you know how I am with babies.”

Jane put her hand on Petra's knee and she opened her eyes. Jane was smiling warmly at her.

“I know this was a lot to spring on you, I just got excited and ahead of myself. Four kids is a lot.”

Petra covered Jane's hand with her own. “I'll think about it.”

Jane's eyes lit up. “Really?”

“Really.”

Jane made some sort of squealing noise before planting a big kiss on Petra's cheek. “I love you.”

“I love you too, Jane.”

Later that night, when Jane was asleep and the house was quiet, Petra stared up at the dark ceiling. Four kids. Eight arms, grabbing things. Four mouths eating everything. Eight legs running around the house. It mostly terrified Petra, but deep down, it excited her. She was starting to finally feel like a real mother, so maybe this was part of it.

As she thought about, she imagined a child, a child that looked like a mix of her and Jane. Which was impossible, she was pretty sure. But she couldn't stop thinking about it, and how amazing that child would be. Not that the other children weren't great, but they also had Rafael's blood. Petra couldn't help but wish they had a child that was equally parts her and Jane.

Petra fell asleep thinking about this and continuously dreamed about this child. Sometimes it was a boy, but it was mostly a girl. Long, black hair, Jane's warm brown eyes and her slightly crooked smile. Actually, she looked more like Jane because Petra wanted her to. Petra never espected herself to be a maternal person, and while she wasn't up to level that Jane was, being with Jane and watching their children grow was bringing out this side of Petra. It was scary, this concept of four children, but if Jane felt like they could do it, Petra trusted her.

The next morning, invigorated by her dreams, Petra started to do research. Adoption was a wonderful thing, and she did consider it a little bit, but decided she wanted a blood-related child. One option was to find a sperm donor. Unfortunately, because of the chemo, Rafael was sterile and Petra had used up the last of the sperm to have the twins. Rafael had a half-brother, but that was a whole mess and nobody knew where that guy was, so that was out of the question. Next, the other question would be if it's invitro or a more primitive alternative, one that Petra was a little bit accustomed to; the turkey baster. 

Her mind flashed back to that very awkward moment. Research told her that being aroused aided in the conception of a child, something about it making the body more receptive. However, the fact that Petra was already trying to make a child on her own, the idea of touching herself seemed like too much. The turkey baster inside her was already enough for her.

This, however, would be different, if they did go that route, because it would be her and Jane. But then the question became if she or Jane would carry the child. For Petra, her pregnancies didn't go so well in the past. Her first pregnancy seemed to be going fine, normal, until she had a late-term miscarriage. When she was pregnant that time, she was actually excited and things were going well for her and Rafael. She was happy, but it ended it sadly. Then with her second pregnancy, she had terrible morning (and afternoon and evening) sickness, she was in pain all the time, and she was terrified because it was a last-ditch effort to get Rafael back. That didn't work. However, it had ended up working out, just in an unexpected way.

Five years ago, if someone told her she would be in love with the very woman who drove the final wedge between her and Rafael, the woman who was carrying the child that came from the sperm of her husband, she would have laughed. Really laughed.

The development of their relationship was strange, to put it frankly. It wasn't a love at first sight type of thing. Petra was pretty sure she hated Jane at first. Unfortunately for Petra, Jane turned out to be a really nice person, and showed Petra a level of kindness she was not used to. It wasn't a gradual process, but more like a roller coaster and a lot of ups and downs. 

Petra fell in love with Jane because she a good person who treated Petra like a person. Jane, according to Jane, fell in love with Petra because she's strong and “adorably stubborn.” Jane also said that Petra toughened her up.

Now, five years after meeting Jane Gloriana Villanueva, they were now married and considering having a fourth child.

Again, back to who was going to carry the child, Petra would do it if Jane didn't want to, but she felt Jane would be better. Her pregnancy with Mateo seemed to go very well, and she was the more maternal person. As she did her research, something came up, something very interesting.

Later that day, when Jane came home from a meeting, Petra organized a nice lunch for them. After they settled and sat in the kitchen, Petra took Jane's hands.

“Jane, I've been thinking about what you brought up last night,” Petra said slowly.

“Oh, yeah?” Jane said cheerfully, despite the nervous look she had on her face. Petra smiled.

“I want to have another child.”

Jane squealed, grabbed Petra's face, and kissed her. “Oh, Petra, thank you.”

“You're welcome, but I'm doing this for me, as well, because I do want another child.”

Jane pulled back, but only slightly, so their noses were touching. “How do you want to do this?”

“Well, I've done some research...”

Jane made a noise of pleasure in her throat. “Oh, I love it when you say things like that.”

Petra chuckled. “Yes, so, there is some experimental work being done, in terms of conception. Apparently, they can make sperm cells from human stem cells.”

Jane sat back further, her eyebrows furrowed slightly. “I've heard about this. It sounds risky, Petra.”

“I know, Jane, but we could have a completely biological child.”

Jane looked away and chewed on her thumbnail. Petra took her hand again. “Jane, it's just one option, but I can't stop thinking about how amazing that would be. A child, both you and me.”

Tears sprung up in Jane's eyes, but she laughed. “That would be amazing.” She brought her head up. “A baby, with your big, beautiful eyes and adorable ears.”

Petra flushed. “What's wrong with my ears?”

“I said adorable, Petra. I love the way they stick out a little bit.”

Jane reached up and ran a finger over the outer edge of Petra's ear. Petra huffed, but couldn't control the smile spreading on her face. “So you like the idea?”

“I'm still a little hesitant, but I think it would be good, if it works. How does it work?”

“Well, from my understanding, they'll extract stem cells from the 'father's' bone marrow, somehow make it into sperms cells, and transplant into the eggs of the 'mother.'”

“Who will carry the baby?”

Petra cleared her throat. “I was thinking, maybe, you? Unless you don't want to, Jane. I can.”

Jane smiled warmly. “I can, Petra. I would love to.”

“Like you said, it will be risky. There's a good chance it won't take, and I think if the first attempt doesn't work, we should try something else.”

Jane nodded. “I agree.” Then, she exhaled sharply.

“What is it?”

“I don't know how I should explain this to my family. Ma will probably be okay with it, but Abuela... stem cells are a controversial thing in the Catholic church.”

“I didn't think about that.”

Jane sat back fully in her chair and crossed her arms. “I'm sure they would love another grandchild, but, I don't know.”

Petra bit the tip of her tongue as she thought. “Well, maybe, we shouldn't tell them. Wait, hear me out, I don't think we should tell them until we know for sure. We don't tell them we're trying, let along the whole process, until it's taken and it's far enough along.”

“They'll know,” Jane said.

“How?”

“The intuition of knowing me for 28 years and giving birth to me, and giving birth to the woman who gave birth to me. They would know.”

“Then you need to be a good liar. I know you're not a good one, so I'll help you. Jane, look at me,” Petra instructed. Jane looked up, but her eyes were darting around. “You can't do that.”

“Sorry.”

“You need to make eye contact. Jane, are you pregnant?”

“No, but Petra, I'm really not, so I'm not lying.”

“Are you pregnant?” 

Jane rolled her eyes. “No.”

“Are you pregnant? Look at me.”

Jane looked right into Petra's eyes. “No.”

“See, Jane, that's what you need to do. Don't overshare, don't make excuses. Just say no.”

“What if they, like, see me not drinking alcohol?”

“A glass of wine is okay, Jane,” Petra sighed patiently. “Besides, we're getting ahead of ourselves. We still need to actually do the procedure.”

Jane pulled Petra's hand towards her and kissed each of her knuckles. “The act of making babies is so sexy.”

Petra laughed. “Isn't it?”

Jane kissed up Petra's arm before reaching her shoulder, her neck, her jaw, and finally her mouth. It was a slow, deep kiss, one that Petra melted into. They would have gone further, but they both had more meetings. That night, however, with the children away with Rafael, they spent the night making love, and it was nearly 2am when they finally stopped and took a breath.

Petra didn't realize she had fallen asleep for a moment until Jane gently stroked Petra's arm, jolting her awake.

“I love you, Petra. I know there's a good chance this won't take, but I have a good feeling,” Jane whispered, apparently unaware Petra had just fallen asleep.

Petra gazed back at Jane and smiled. “I do, too.”

She had lied. She was nervous and excited, but mostly nervous, because she wanted this to work. But, again, if Jane had a good feeling, she would make herself have a good feeling.


	2. Chapter 2

Two weeks later, Petra and Jane had an appointment with a doctor. It took those two weeks to actually track down a doctor who could do this relatively new procedure.

“It has a very low success rate,” she warned.

“We know,” Petra said, Jane's hand clutched tightly in her own. “We still want to do it.”

The doctor nodded. “It's also very expensive.”

“We also know that and are fully prepared for the cost.”

Again, the doctor nodded. “So, for this procedure, we will extract the stem cells from the bone marrow of...”

“Me,” Petra informed her. 

“You, which involves inserting a needle into your hip bone, extracting the stem cells, then harvesting the stem cells, making sure they're clean, then, we will create sperm cells from that. It will take at least a month.”

Petra nodded, then looked at Jane, who swallowed.

“Into her hip?”

“She'll be put under anesthesia. She will be a sore for a little bit, but there will be no scarring.”

“It'll be fine, Jane,” Petra whispered to her.

Jane nodded, but squeezed Petra's hand even more tightly.

“Very well, we can do the procedure today if you want,” the doctor said, pulling out some paperwork.

At these words, Petra's heart started pounding. It was starting to sink in, now, of all times.

“Uh,” she stuttered, her mouth dry.

“Petra?” Jane whispered. “We don't have to do it today, if you don't want.”

“Uh, yeah,” Petra forced out.

“'Yeah' that you want to do it today or 'yeah' that you want to do it later?”

Petra nodded dumbly, until Jane nudged her. “I mean, yes, I want to do it today.”

The doctor smiled. “Very well, we'll prep the operating room.”

After she left, Jane kissed Petra on the cheek. “You'll be okay.”

“What makes you think I think I won't be?”

“Well, for one thing, you're sweating,” Jane chuckled softly and wiped a bead of sweat away from Petra's forehead.

“I don't like needles,” Petra mumbled, too quietly.

“What?”

“I don't like needles,” she repeated, only slightly more loudly.

“Petra,” Jane whispered, “I don't like them either. I remember, when I had my amniocentesis, I was terrified, and not just because it's very risky. I mean, they stuck a freakin' needle through my stomach.”

Petra shivered. “That sounds awful.”

“Yes, but then I knew Mateo was healthy. And at least you'll be asleep.”

Petra nodded, willing herself to not cry. The first shot she remembered getting was when she arrived in America, in her mid-twenties. She cried when the needle went into her arm and her mother, ever so maternal, scoffed and told her to behave like an adult. Then, when she had her miscarriage, she had tests done to try to figure out what happened. So many needles, too many needles, and she cried then too, for a number of reasons. She had acupuncture when she was trying to conceive the second time, and that wasn't so bad, since they were small and she didn't have to look at them. A needle through the hip was something else.

An hour later, Petra was dressed in a hospital gown and taken to the operating room. Thanks to the combined stubbornness and strength of Petra and Jane, they managed to convince the doctors to let Jane stay in the room until Petra was asleep.

“You'll be here when I wake up?” Petra asked Jane, only slightly regretting the weakness in her voice.

“Of course,” Jane said softly, her thumb stroking the top of Petra's hand.

“Alright, Petra,” the doctor said. “Ready?”

Not really. “Yes.”

The anesthesiologist came over and inserted a needle into the inside crook of Petra's elbow and Petra's heart-rate spiked.

“Petra, it's okay,” Jane cooed into her ear. “You're okay, I'm here.”

Petra took a few deep breathes and nodded. As she felt the anesthesia take hold, she squeezed Jane's hand as tightly as she could and Jane squeezed back. She fought against the anesthesia as long as she could, looking at Jane's face as long as she could. 

Jane smiled and said, “it's okay.”

And Petra was out.

As she was waking up, the first thing she was aware of was how much her throat hurt, then how much her hip hurt. Next, it was the hand in her own. She blinked her eyes open and saw Jane sitting by her bed, staring intently at her. She smiled.

“Petra, you're awake.”

“My throat,” she said hoarsely.

“That's from the breathing tube. The nurse said you can't have water until she says it's okay.”

“It went well?”

“Everything was extracted successfully, so we'll hear in a month if the other stuff goes well.”

“Do I look bad?”

Jane kissed her on the forehead. “No.”

“Don't lie.”

“I thought you told me to lie?” Jane asked, faking confusion.

“You really are a good student.”

“You look fine, just a little pale. They took a decent amount of blood out of you.”

Jane lightly stroked Petra's forehead with the tip of her finger and Petra relaxed. Then Jane started to sing a lullaby in Spanish, one she sang to the kids all the time. Petra drifted off for a while, when she woke up, a nurse was hovering over her, checking her vitals.

“Everything looks good, Mrs. Villanueva,” the nurse said when she saw that Petra was awake. “You should be able to go home in an hour or two.”

“And everything is okay with the stem cells?” Jane asked from across the room.

The nurse nodded. “As far as I know. It will be a while before you know if the stem cells are changed to sperm cells, though. I hope it works; you two would have a very cute baby.”

Jane beamed at Petra. “I know.”

When Petra got to leave, she was still very sore and had to be taken to the car in a wheelchair. She was given a cane for at home, which the children found very funny.

“Mommy looks like an old lady,” Anna so delicately pointed out.

“Mommy's not old, Anna,” Mateo said, sounding a lot like Jane, in a slightly know-it-all tone. “Not really, really old, anyway.”

“I just have a pain in my hip,” Petra said, sinking down onto the couch with Jane's help.

“From what?” Mateo asked.

“Uh,” Petra looked at Jane. They didn't want the kids to know they were doing this, again, not until they knew for sure it was happening.

“Mommy fell,” Jane said. “Fell right on her hip.”

“Aww, poor Mommy,” Anna cooed. Elsa came over and hugged Petra, followed by Anna and Mateo.

Petra patted each of their backs, while looking over their heads at Jane. Jane was getting too good at lying, especially towards her own children.

Jane was a better liar than she realized over the next month, but it was starting to get to her. Not just because of the lying, but also because they still hadn't heard anything. Petra was trying to remain calm, for Jane's sake, but after three weeks, it was hard. It didn't help that Jane had started to take hormones in preparation for egg removal.

“The doctor said a month, Jane. At least. It's only been three weeks,” Petra said softly as they drove to the Villanueva house for dinner.

“I know, but I can't stop thinking, like, what if something goes wrong? Let's say the stem cells become sperm cells, what if there's something wrong with my eggs?”

“How can you say that when you have Mateo?”

“What if my eggs and your 'sperm' aren't compatible?”

Petra, who was driving, reaching out for Jane's arm without even looking at her. “They will be.”

“You don't know that,” Jane mumbled.

“No, I don't, but if I've learned anything from you is that some positive thinking can do wonders.”

“Hm.”

“And some praying.”

She saw Jane turn her head towards her in her peripheral vision. “You don't pray.”

“Not normally, no, but for this? I've been praying. I don't think I've been doing it right, or if I'm even actually praying to someone, something, but it does make me feel a little bit better.”

Jane made a choking noise and Petra turned her head slightly and saw that Jane was crying. Jane's crying face was always a little bit startling, the way her eyebrows furrowed together and her mouth twisted.

“Jane.”

“I'm sorry, it's the hormones,” Jane said with a slight gasp, wiping her face.

“You're going to get a hold of that before we get there. I don't want your family thinking that I yelled at you or something.”

“I know, I know, I'm good.”

Petra had her doubts, but when they pulled up to the house, Jane had calmed down and her eyes were no longer puffy and red. As soon as they stepped inside the house, they were both gathered up into tight hugs from Rogelio, then Alba and Xiomara.

“I wish you brought the kids,” Xiomara said. “They're growing so fast.”

“I know, but they're spending the weekend with Rafael and his fiancee,” Jane said.

“What's her name?” Xiomara asked.

“Caroline. She's really sweet and doesn't seem super overwhelmed that her fiance has three small children.”

“The children all really like her,” Petra said. “I think she spoils them.”

“Well, who wouldn't?” Rogelio said. 

“Yeah, we know you spoil them, Dad,” Jane said, shaking her head.

“I cannot help they are so adorable.”

“Mateo is turning into a little Jane,” Petra said. “Actually, I think Anna is, too. Elsa probably would be too if she wasn't so quiet.”

“What do you mean?” Jane asked, sounding a little offended.

“They're know-it-all's, Jane. They're always correcting us.”

“They're smart, Petra.”

“I know they are, but a four-year-old and three-year-olds shouldn't be so smart.”

“Oh, Jane corrected people from the moment she could talk,” Xiomara said. “I think her first full sentence was, 'I think it was actually...'”

“Ma,” Jane sighed.

“My mother said I was quiet when I was young. She had to force me to talk sometimes. Then, at a certain age she said started talking too much,” Petra said.

“I'm sure you were very smart. You just have a more introspective type of intelligence,” Jane mused. “Like, you stood back and watched before you did something.”

“That sounds right.”

“Petra found a baby picture of herself,” Jane practically announced. 

“Oh, nobody needs to see that,” Petra said. “Besides, it back at our house.”

Jane smiled sheepishly. “It's in my wallet.”

Before Petra could stop her, Jane pulled her wallet out of her purse and opened it. She removed a rather damaged photo, making it look older than being from the mid-80's. She handed it to Xiomara first, who gasped.

“Petra, you were precious. Those eyes.”

Petra hated the photo because not only did she believe herself to be a rather ugly baby; too scrawny for a baby, and eyes much too large, but also, she was naked. It didn't matter that she was a baby.

“I can see a resemblance to the twins,” Rogelio noted, studying the photo closely.

“Their eyes aren't so...” Xiomara started.

“¿Grande?” Alba supplied.

“Abuela,” Jane said quietly. 

“¿Qué? Son bellos ojos. Muy bonitos,” Alba said, looking at Petra. It still didn't help. It also made her hope her potential fourth child didn't get those eyes. They looked fine on an adult, but on a small baby? Strange, in her opinion. Jane felt differently.

When she looked at Jane, she was alarmed to see that Jane was tearing up again. And Xiomara noticed this.

“Janey? What is it?”

“Nothing, Ma, just... I think I'm getting my period.”

“You don't usually get this emotional when you have PMS. Is it something else?”

Jane looked right at her mother, and for a moment, Petra panicked. 

“I saw Mateo's school photo and he looks so grown up. He looks like a little person.”

“Oh, sweetie.” Xiomara hugged her daughter. “I know it's hard, but he's growing up to be such a bright, sweet little boy. You should be proud.”

“I am. Very, very proud, I just miss when he was a little baby. Remember when he was that little?”

“I remember all that hair,” Xiomara laughed. “He was very cute.”

“And the twins, they're their own little people too. They're going to grow up to be amazing people.”

“With you and Petra as parents? Of course they will. Maybe you should have more kids.” Xiomara said this as a joke, because she laughed, while Jane awkwardly laughed with her.

And the moment passed. Jane flashed her a smile while they sat at the dinner table and took her hand from underneath the table; Petra relaxed.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's some brief smut near the end of this, just as a warning.

Petra's phone rang with the doctor's number on it. She showed it to Jane before answering. Jane placed her hand over her own mouth.

“Yes, hello, this is Petra.”

“Hello, Petra, this is Doctor Francisco. Would you mind coming to the office so we can talk?”

Petra couldn't read the doctor's tone and she felt sick. “You can't tell me over the phone?”

“No, I'm sorry. The office is open until five, so you can come in anytime, but the sooner, the better.”

“Okay, thank you,” Petra mumbled and ended the call.

“So? Your face doesn't look good,” Jane said, the fingernail of her index finger in her mouth.

“She wouldn't tell me on the phone, but it didn't sound good to me.”

Jane was quiet for a minute as she continued to chew on her fingernail. Normally Petra would stop her, but she knew how Jane felt. They said they would go to the next option if this didn't work, but it would still be difficult. Petra had gotten so used to the idea of a child that was both of them.

“Jane,” she finally said, “whatever happens, it'll be okay.”

Jane looked surprised, that Petra had actually managed to sound comforting. Normally it sounded fake when she said things like that, like she didn't really believe it.

“Okay,” Jane said with a weak smile.

The ride over was quiet, as was the wait in the waiting room. When the doctor let them in, her face was still unreadable and it was making anger flare up in Petra's stomach. Apparently sensing this, Jane gripped Petra's knee.

“Well, I know it was a long wait, and you two were patient, so I won't make you wait anymore,” as she spoke, her face was an impassive mask.

Then, she smiled. “Congratulation, Petra's stem cells are now sperm cells.”

“What?” Jane gasped. Petra gaped at her.

“They look healthy and are ready for transplant once we know if Jane's eggs are ready for extraction.”

“Oh my god, Petra!” Jane threw her arms around Petra, who hadn't moved in about a minute.

“Now, there are still a lot of steps to go, but it is a good sign. It's important that we begin the egg removal process as soon as possible. So, if it's alright with you, Jane, we will perform an ultrasound on you and make sure you're at the right stage of ovulation. If not, I will give you a medication to stimulate it, as well as ripen your eggs.”

Jane made a face at that. “'Ripen?'”

“I'm sorry about the choice of words, but it really is what it is.”

Jane looked at Petra before smiling and saying, “Yeah, okay, let's do it.”

“Great. The examining room is just next door, so meet me in there. You don't need to change your clothes.”

When they were in the other room, before the doctor came back, that strong resolve of Jane was slowly melting away.

“Jane? What's wrong?”

“Just nervous. And I know I shouldn't be.”

“Your eggs are good, just like everything else about you.”

“Oh, Petra, you sap.”

Petra's face flushed and she pretended to look at something on the wall. She could feel Jane's eyes on her, but the doctor came in at that moment.

“Alright, normally the ultrasound technician would do this, but she isn't here today, so it's me.” Francisco pulled out the machine, lifted up Jane's shirt to rub the jelly on her stomach, then started to run the wand across it. She hummed softly as she did this, but didn't say anything for a while.

“Well?” Jane asked, her voice cracking a little.

“It looks great. You're right on track to begin ovulating soon and your eggs look great. We need to extract the eggs before they leave the ovaries, so I say we do the extraction in two days.”

“Two days?” Jane repeated, her eyes wide. She was half-smiling, meaning she was terrified. She looked to Petra.

“What does the procedure entail?” Petra asked, her hand gripping Jane's.

“We will either give Jane pain medication or put her under, then we will find the precise location of the eggs through ultrasound, then insert a hollow tube into Jane's vagina and ovary, then the eggs will be removed. It's a quick procedure.”

Jane's hand tightened around Petra's at these words. 

“Will she be in any pain?”

Francisco looked between them. “A little bit, but probably not at much as after you had your procedure, Petra.”

Petra had been in pain for a couple days after, but not the worst pain she had had. She smiled down at Jane and mouthed, “It will be okay.”

Jane swallowed, looked at the doctor, and nodded.

“Set the appointment for two days from now,” Petra said.

“Very well. To be safe, there is an injection I want you to take 36 hours before the procedure. Remember that. 36 hours before.”

Automatically, Jane whipped out her phone and typed that out into her calendar. “Done.”

For the hormone injections over the past month, Jane tried to do them herself, but failed, so Petra stepped in. There was a lot of yelling from both of them. Jane complaining that Petra was doing it too hard and Petra complaining about Jane's complaining. After the first couple of times, though, they got better at it. When it came time to do the final injection, Petra felt like a professional. After it was done, Jane gave her that look.

“We're about to make a baby,” she whispered.

“A baby in a petri dish, how erotic.”

Jane showed her agreement by kissing Petra. It didn't take long for their clothes to come off. Normally Petra started things off, but Jane was in such a good mood (and likely overly-aroused because of the hormones) Petra found herself on her back, head pressed against the headboard, and Jane's head between her legs. The children were home, so Petra ended up having to press a pillow to her face.

When Jane came back up, she kissed Petra again, her mouth formed into a very wide smile. Petra then returned the favor.

36 hours later, they were back in the doctor's office. Despite Jane's obvious nervousness, she opted for only pain medication, while Petra stood by her side the entire time. Jane took slow, deep breaths, her eyes closed. Before she knew it, it was over.

“All done, Jane. Now you can go home, rest, and we'll get that baby made. We'll call you in a few days.”

More waiting. Petra was tired of waiting, and surely Jane was too, but she didn't say anything. Instead, she jumped back into her writing to distract herself. Petra took the children to the park and met Rafael there.

After a chorus of “Daddy!” and hugs, the kids ran to play on the playground, while Petra and Rafael sat on a nearby bench.

“You look tired,” Rafael noted.

Petra gave Rafael a look and he smiled back.

“I say that out of concern, Petra. Is something bothering you?”

“No.”

“Petra, we were married, remember? I know you pretty well.”

Petra chewed on the corner of her bottom lip, not meeting Rafael's eye. Even though she had lied to Rafael in the past, as their relationship changed and actually became better when they weren't together, she found it more and more difficult to lie to him.

“I can't tell you,” she mumbled.

“Why not?”

“It's a secret.”

“Petra.”

She couldn't stop it. It came out of her like verbal diarrhea. “Jane and I are going to have another baby?”

“What?” Rafael leaned in close. “Really?”

“Well, maybe. We're trying.”

“When you say trying...”

“We're having continuous sex. What the hell do you think it means?”

Petra looked at Rafael and he looked confused. “There's none of my sperm left. Who's the father?”

Petra felt immense satisfaction as she said, “I am.”

Rafael blinked a few times. “What?”

Deciding to stop messing with Rafael, Petra went with the facts. “Jane and I are trying a new procedure where stem cells can be turned into sperm cells. They were my stem cells, so it's, technically, my sperm. The eggs were extracted yesterday and are on their on becoming embryos.”

Rafael didn't say anything for a while. Petra almost thought he was upset, until he wrapped an arm around her and said, “I'm so happy for you. Even though I won't biologically be this baby's father, I would love to be in its life as much as I am with Mateo, Anna, and Elsa.”

Petra felt a sudden wave of emotion and she had to force herself to not cry. She turned her head away from Rafael. “That would be nice.”

The attention of them both was directed to their children, as Mateo and Anna were having an argument.

“Anna, don't hit your brother!” Petra shouted.

After the issue was resolved, Rafael clapped his hand onto Petra's shoulder.

“You're sure you want a fourth kid? I love them, but three is already a lot.”

“I'm sure,” Petra said without thinking about it. “Jane is such a wonderful mother and I'm... getting better.”

“You're a good mother, Petra. You're a good amount of hard on them and sweet with them. You and Jane balance each other out.”

“Thanks, Raf,” Petra mumbled, her eyes staring ahead, towards her children. She knew Rafael was still looking at her, so she looked back at him. “Really, thanks. It means a lot.”

Rafael nodded and gripped her shoulder. He was quiet for about five minutes before saying, “I'm going to propose to Caroline.”

Petra looked at him, eyebrows raised. “Really?”

He nodded. “I really like her and she's so wonderful with the kids. What do you think?”

Petra laughed softly. “I think it's wonderful, Raf. I do like Caroline and she makes you happy. You deserve to be happy.”

Rafael didn't cry much, and this was no exception, but his eyes did shimmer before he hugged Petra. “Thank you, Petra. I never thought I'd hear you say that.”

Petra returned the hug and rubbed Rafael's back. “Yeah, well, it took us a while to get to this place.”

Before he pulled back completely, he kissed her on the cheek. “I'm planning on doing it tonight.”

“I'm sure she'll say yes.”

Rafael was grinning and Petra found herself feeling happy that Rafael was happy. It was a strange feeling.

Before they left, Petra remembered something. “Rafael, you cannot tell anyone what Jane and I are doing. There's a slim chance that this will work and we don't want to get anyone's hopes up.”

“Of course, Petra. And don't tell anyone about what I'm planning on doing tonight.”

“Of course.”

After a call from the doctor that the embryos were almost ready for implantation and were looking healthy, Petra treated Jane to a childless dinner in a private room at the Marbella, before she possibly became pregnant with her fourth child. Jane, already preparing, opted to not drink.

“I want my body good and ready, and healthy, for this,” Jane said after she turned down the glass of wine. “I want to make sure this goes well.”

“I'm sure it will.” Petra started to take a sip of her wine, but put it back down. “Rafael knows.”

“What? Petra!” Jane said too loudly. She quickly lowered her voice. “How?”

“I told him. He knew something was up and I couldn't lie to him.”

“You told me to lie to my family, Petra.”

“I know, but he kept berating me and I didn't know what to say. He promised he wouldn't tell and he's happy for us.”

Jane exhaled sharply and Petra reached over for her hand. “It won't matter because soon? You'll be pregnant and we can tell everyone.”

Jane looked adorably angry for another minute or two before rolling her eyes. “Who knew you were such a blabbermouth?”

“Maybe it's from spending too much time with you, Jane Villanueva.”

“I am not a blabbermouth,” Jane scoffed.

“You are. You get worked up and things just spill out of you. But it's okay.”

Jane chewed on her lower lip. “So Rafael really was happy for us?”

“He was. And he said that he would love to be a father-type to this child too.”

Jane's face scrunched as tears started to leak out. She wiped underneath her eyes. “Sorry, hormones, but that really is sweet.”

“It is. What do you think the kids will say?”

“Well, I think it might be a little bit of a shock. Elsa already has to put up with a big brother and a little sister, and another little brother or sister might be a bit much for her. Maybe, with her luck, this baby will be like her.”

“Or it could be another Anna.”

“Anna is just an exuberant girl, Petra. Maybe she's like you if you weren't so...”

“So...?”

“Emotionally constipated.”

Petra scoffed.

“I mean that in a nice way. Well, as nicest as that can be. Your mom just raised you like that.”

“How do you know that's not my actual personality?”

Jane shrugged and sipped at the water in front of her. “I don't. I like the way you are now, but I do wonder if you were always like this.”

“I can't say. I'm assuming you were always this way?”

“Anal and detail oriented? Yes.”

“Stubborn.”

“That too. But you're pretty stubborn, too.”

“That was not something my mother raised me to be. My mother hated how stubborn I was, but I'm pretty sure I got that from her.”

“This kid is gonna be something. Doubly stubborn.”

“I say it's going to be amazing. Our genes together? Please.”

Jane smiled over the glass of water before raising it.

“To our future kid, may they be happy and healthy.”

Petra raised her glass as well. “May they be amazing.”

They clinked their glasses and drank. Shortly after that, they moved to the bedroom. This was possibly their last time together before Jane was pregnant, and while Jane had said she had no issue with having sex while pregnant, Petra would likely want to wait until they knew for sure the pregnancy was progressing well.

Because of this, Petra made it about Jane that night. After the third time, Jane had to make Petra stop. She grabbed Petra's head and pulled her up towards her, pulling her into a kiss.

“That was really nice, Petra, but I need a break,” she panted. “What about you?”

“I'm fine, Jane.”

“I think you're lying.” 

“And what makes you say that?”

Jane then dipped her hand between Petra's legs and raised her eyebrows. Even that slight contact made Petra shiver. She hated being proven wrong, especially by Jane.

“Fine.”

“You don't need to say 'fine' like it's a bad thing,” Jane said huskily. She gently stroked Petra with just one finger and Petra quickly bit her own bottom lip. “The kids aren't here, you don't need to worry about not being quiet. Make all the noise you want.”

For someone who was a virgin for 26 years, Jane caught on quickly in regards to dirty talk. With Jane, though, it wasn't especially dirty, just more seductive. Her voice wasn't especially high—though certainly higher than Petra's—but when she spoke like that, it went down an octave or two and it drove Petra insane.

Jane added some more pressure and Petra let out a moan. It wasn't loud, because Petra wasn't especially loud during sex, but it was louder. Jane grinned. Petra didn't know if she was grinning because Petra made more noise or...

Suddenly there were two fingers inside her and instinctively, Petra very quickly began to ride those fingers. After two years of marriage, Jane had learned long ago Petra's most sensitive spots (and Petra learned the same for Jane). The obvious one was the clitoris—and was Jane's go-to spot when she was crunched for time—but there were a couple other spots that Jane had to figure out on her own. Luckily for Petra, Jane was a fast learner and very attentive.

Petra locked eyes with Jane as she moved closer and closer to that edge, and just when she was moments from it, Jane's phone began to ring. It was next to them, so they could see that Rafael was calling.

“Shit, sorry, Petra,” Jane said before answering the phone. Always a multitasker, Jane held the phone in one hand while her right hand in the same place it had been for a couple minutes. Unfortunately, Jane stopped moving it. “Yes, hello, Rafael?”

Jane listened, nodding, then her eyes went wide. She looked at Petra. “Anna fell and had to get stitches. She wants us. Okay, Rafael, we'll be there soon.”

After she hung up she looked at Petra apologetically. 

“I'm so close, Jane. Can't you just...” The maternal part of her brain was pulsing with guilt for saying that, but unfortunately the rest of her brain was taken over by arousal and a lack of blood.

“We're gonna have to get used to this, sweetie,” Jane said gently. She removed her hand and wiped it on the sheet. “We will continue this sometime soon, I promise.”

Petra laid there for another minute or so, trying to calm herself down. Jane had already dressed and Petra followed suit a moment later.

The stitches turned out to be not that bad, but when Anna hugged Petra tightly, Petra couldn't be annoyed with her daughter.


	4. Chapter 4

The next morning, they went in for the implantation. Petra could tell Jane was nervous, but she seemed more excited than anything.

“You know, I realized, all of the conceptions of our kids have been... unconventional,” Jane noted while they waited for the doctor. Jane was dressed in her gown, feet in stirrups.

“You mean accidental insemination, purposeful turkey-basting, and this? Really, this is the most conventional one, I would say.”

“It was done out of love.”

Petra cleared her throat. “Technically, the turkey-basting was also done out of love, just misguided love.”

“I guess if we had been together from the start, any conceptions would be 'unconventional.' It just depends on what your definition of unconventional is. If it doesn't fit heteronormative ideals, then yes, it could be unconventional.”

Petra looked down at Jane, slightly impressed. “Someone has been doing some gender studies.”

“Yeah, did you know that the internet is more than porn?”

“I wouldn't know,” Petra said, deadpan.

Petra could always get Jane to laugh when she made a joke like that, mostly because Petra didn't frequently make jokes, so it usually caught Jane off-guard. This was no exception and by the doctor came in, Jane was still laughing.

“The embryos are all ready to go,” he said. Petra squinted at him.

“Embryos, as in plural?”

“Three, actually. It improves your chances a little bit.”

Petra looked at Jane, wide-eyed, but Jane looked unconcerned. 

“We have three kids already, so is there a chance of multiples?” Jane asked.

“A bit, yes. But it's unlikely.”

“And twins run in my family, what if the three embryos implant, then each become twins?” Petra rarely panicked like this. That was Jane's job, but the image of Jane carrying six babies popped into her head and it wouldn't go away. Jane grabbed Petra's arm.

“That is very, very unlikely,” the doctor said, obviously trying to not speak to Petra like she was insane.

“Petra, it'll be okay. I have a good feeling about one baby.”

Petra stared into Jane's warm brown eyes and believed her. This was why she fell in love with Jane.

“Alright, Mrs. Villanueva, ready?”

Jane looked at Petra and nodded. “I am.”

Jane took Petra's hand and closed her eyes as the doctor inserted the tube containing the embryos. Jane's grip tightened a couple times, but it was over quickly.

“Alright, Jane, it's done. I'll have you lay here for a bit, then when you go home, take it easy for the rest of the day. You can take a pregnancy test in about two weeks.”

He left them alone. Jane moved her hands down to her stomach and closed her eyes. She started saying a prayer, first in Spanish, then in English.

“Please, God, bless this baby, may it be happy, healthy, grow, and know we love so, so much already. Please bring this child into this world alive. In your name we say, Amen.”

Petra had clasped her hands and mumbled an 'amen' after Jane did. She wasn't religious, but Jane was, and if Jane believed prayer would help, Petra would believe it too. Anything helped.

They stayed for another hour before going home. Petra set up a little work station for Jane on the couch, so Jane could get some writing done if she wanted. The tea Petra had brought Jane was left untouched, as she started researching something online. Petra could see her frowning.

“What is it, Jane?”

“Nothing, it's just these chances are so slim,” Jane mumbled, leaning in close to the screen.

“Yes, well, the doctor told us that.”

“I know, but actually seeing the numbers is scary. Maybe I should sit...” Jane rotated so her feet hung off the side of the arm-rests of the couch.

“Maybe you should sit upside down,” Petra joked.

“Do you think that would work?”

Petra turned her head away so Jane couldn't see her roll her eyes. “Jane, this is a medical procedure. Sitting upside down will not help. I did that when I inseminated myself, and honestly, I don't think that did anything. Many people have sex and don't sit upside down afterwards to conceive a baby. Gravity doesn't play into this. Just, relax, and let nature take its course.”

Jane huffed a little, but nodded. Petra had to tell Jane to relax a couple more times after that, because anytime Jane felt a twinge in her stomach, she panicked.

“You just ate, remember? That's your actual stomach, not your uterus,” Petra said, her tone sounding a lot like when she spoke to one of the kids.

“What happens to the embryos that don't implant?” Jane asked.

“They... die?” Petra knew this wasn't the right thing to say, but there was no other way around it.

“Oh.”

“They die so their brother or sister can live, so, it's heroic.”

Jane frowned and rubbed her stomach. “I didn't think about the other embryos dying.”

“What did you think would happen?”

She shrugged, looking genuinely distressed. “I didn't think about it. I was so concerned about the embryos actually surviving before they were implanted, I didn't think about after.”

Petra couldn't think of something to say because she didn't understand the problem, so she placed her hand on Jane's stomach, over Jane's hand. Jane stared at their hands for a moment before taking a deep breath. 

“I'm sorry, I think it's still hormones.”

“It's okay.”

“Can you give me some comforting words?”

“Uh,” Petra licked her lips. “Yes, I can do that. If all the embryos become infants, that's okay, but if only one lives, that's okay, too, because that means that baby is strong and is given the best chance. Right now, you just need to focus on relaxing, and let your body do its thing.”

Petra leaned down and kissed Jane on the forehead. Jane smiled and did look more relaxed. “Thanks, Petra. That was very comforting, especially for you.”

“It wasn't so bad,” Petra admitted, smiling gently.

Nearly two weeks after the embryos were implanted, Petra had to go on a business trip. A conference for South-Eastern Florida hotels. Rafael went with her, so the kids stayed with Jane, with the help of her family. Jane promised she wouldn't do a pregnancy test until after Petra got back. Petra made her promise twice.

Rafael offered to drive the two of them to Fort Myers, where the conference was. 

“It'll be nice for the two of us to take a break from the kids,” Rafael said after they left.

“They can be a handful,” Petra admitted.

“I love them to bits, though.” He sighed. “Anna reminds me so much of you. She's so snarky.”

“I wasn't snarky as a child. I was more like Elsa.”

“Then Anna is you now,” Rafael said with a smirk. “And Mateo is all Jane. He's such a sweet kid.”

Petra paused a couple moments before saying, “you're sweet too, Raf. And Luisa said you were a very sweet little boy.”

Rafael cleared his throat and looked slightly embarrassed. Petra nudged him playfully.

“So, how is... everything going?”

“I'm assuming you're talking about our adventures in conception.”

“Which should be the title of the book you and Jane write. And yes, that's what I'm talking about.”

“Jane will be taking a pregnancy test soon.”

“Nervous?”

“That's a stupid question.”

“And that's not an answer,” Rafael pointed out softly.

Petra looked out the window, taking in the scenery of the Everglades around them. She sighed. “Of course I am. We're either going to have to deal with this failing, or we'll have a fourth baby. I want the fourth baby, but it's also a fourth baby.”

“Remember, I'll be here.”

“I know, Raf. And how are you and Caroline?”

“Caroline is already deep in wedding planning. She's so excited.”

“I'm glad. I do event planning, but weddings give me a headache.”

“Your wedding was nice.”

“Which one?”

Rafael looked unsure if he should laugh or not, so Petra laughed. “The one to Jane,” he said, smiling.

“It was nice, because I felt relaxed. I was in a good place. I am in a good place. But planning other people's wedding? Terrible. That's why I prefer coordinating, not planning.”

“Then would it be weird if I asked you to plan my wedding?” 

Petra blinked at him, while he looked at her out of the corner of his eye. When she didn't respond for several moments, he turned his head briefly.

“It is weird,” he agreed, before she could say anything. “I mean, we were married. I shouldn't have--”

“I will.”

“Really? I mean, you might also have another baby on the way.”

“Maybe, but maybe not. Despite what my actions in the past have shown, I do want you to be happy. I'll plan your wedding.”

Rafael smiled as he kept his eyes on the road. “Thanks, Petra. I promise Caroline is easy to work with.”

“We'll see. I always think they're going to be, then they're not.”

“I think you'll be okay.”

When they got to the hotel, they had little downtime before their day was filled with conferences, meetings, a quick late lunch, and more meetings. By the time the day was over, Petra was exhausted. She and Rafael had a suite with two bedrooms and a small living room and kitchenette in the middle. While Rafael was showering, Petra sat on the couch. So unused to the quiet, Petra dozed off briefly, and was awakened to her phone buzzing. It was Jane.

“Yeah?”

“Petra, I'm so, so sorry, but--”

Jane sounded absolutely panicked and Petra was immediately alert. “Jane? What is it? Is the kids? Is it the--”

“I took the pregnancy test, I'm sorry, I couldn't wait. I was feeling nauseous and I thought, it's probably too early for morning sickness and I wasn't really sure what morning sickness felt like because I didn't have it before. But I decided to take the test anyway because I was getting so nervous--”

“Jane, sweetie, slow down. What did it say?”

There was a brief pause before Jane yelled, “it said I'm pregnant! I took five, just to be sure, and I guess we won't really know until we go to the doctor, but...”

The smile that spread on Petra's face made her face hurt. “Jane, that's wonderful. Make the appointment for the doctor.”

Jane's voice shook as she said, “Okay. I love you.”

“I love you too, Jane. We'll celebrate when I get back. Wait, did you tell your mom and grandmother?”

“No, they're putting the kids to bed. I said I had work to do.”

“Good. I love you and see you soon.”

After she hung up and turned around, Rafael was back in the room. He was looking at her funnily and she didn't know why until she touched her face. Her face was wet.

“Oh, uh, that was Jane.”

“And?” Rafael looked concerned, likely misunderstanding her tears as the result of bad news.

Petra smiled. “It looks like she might be pregnant.”

When she said it aloud, more tears came, like a dam was opening. Rafael came over to her and hugged her.

“Congratulations,” he whispered into the top of her head.

They stayed like that for a good five minutes, before they chatted for a while, then retired to bed. Petra couldn't sleep. She kept thinking about Jane, and their kids, and their future kid, whoever it may be. When she did fall asleep, this time, she dreamed of a little boy, with Jane's crooked smile.

She woke up feeling very good. She smiled all day, making Rafael a little uncomfortable.

“I've never seen you smile like that, at least for this long. I mean, it's nice, but,” he cleared his throat.

“Raf, I'm possibly going to be having a fourth child and one, I never could have imagined this happening, especially with Jane, and I never could have imagined being this happy about it.”

“You really are different, Petra,” Rafael said softly. “I thought I saw glimpses of this version of you, when you were pregnant the first time.”

“Do you think this is the real me?”

“I don't know about that. I've been different people in my life too and maybe that old version of me, and whatever I am now, maybe it's just different parts of me. Now, I can step back and say I don't want to be the person I was. I'm assuming it's the same for you.”

“It is. I mean, I wasn't all bad back then. My mother was awful, but she did teach me to be strong; I don't want to take that away from myself. I've just chosen to direct that part of me towards different things.”

“And that's why I'm proud of you, Petra.”

As they walked up to the counter at a Starbucks outside of the conference center, Rafael ordered something for both of them. After he handed Petra her coffee, he raised his cup up.

“To family.”

Petra raised hers. “To family.”

Petra enjoyed rekindling her relationship with Rafael, honestly. They spent so much energy trying to save their dying marriage, they didn't spend enough time actually enjoying each others company. Petra liked this, this friendship. Her friendship with Jane was different, it started as a friendship before they fell in love with each other. With Rafael, it was the opposite. Both were good.

And it helped the weekend go back faster. She was anxious to get back to Jane and find out if Jane was truly pregnant.

Jane practically jumped on Petra when she walked in the door, followed by three children.

“Mommy!” They chorused, hugging Petra's legs.

“I missed you, Mommy,” Mateo told her. Petra bent down and picked up Mateo with a grunt. He was getting heavy.

“I missed you too, Mateo. Did you behave for your grandmothers?”

“Yeah. Anna didn't.”

“Mateo!” Anna whined. “You promised you wouldn't tell!”

“I did not!”

“Did too!”

“Alright, alright,” Petra said, putting Mateo down. “Anna, what happened?”

“Nothing,” Anna mumbled, looking down at the floor.

“Jane?”

Jane sighed. “Anna didn't like what we were having for dinner and refused to eat it. Then, when my mom told Anna she needed to each, Anna threw a fit and knocked the plate on the floor. Abuela reprimanded her, in Spanish, of course, and Anna got so flustered she threw herself on the floor and started crying. She didn't calm down for an hour.”

“Anna,” Petra started, squatting down to her daughter. “What was that about?”

“I didn't like the food,” Anna mumbled.

“And what was the food?”

“Broccoli.”

Petra rolled her eyes. Such a cliched food for a child to not like. She was about to say something snarky when Jane put her hand on Petra's shoulder. Petra sighed and lowered herself to be at eye level with her daughter. “Anna, that was not a good thing to do. Tomorrow, I want you to apologize to Grandma Xo and Abuela, okay? Even if you don't like something, you can't throw a fit like that.”

Anna nodded, her eyes cast down at the floor and Petra pulled her into a hug. “I love you, Anna.” Then she hugged Elsa, who had stood off to the side.

“Were you good, Elsa?”

“Yes, Mommy. I like broccoli.”

Petra smiled. “I know you do, sweetie. Go play with your brother and sister before bed.”

When the kids went into their playroom, Petra finally pulled Jane towards her and kissed her. They only broke apart when they both needed to breathe.

“How do you feel?” Petra asked, her eyes flickering down to Jane's flat stomach.

“It's way too soon for morning sickness, if I even have any. I feel good though. I made the appointment for tomorrow.”

“Good. We won't be able to do a sonogram, but they can at least do a blood test.”

“How was the trip?” Jane asked, pulling Petra over to the couch. They both sat down.

“Informational, but too long. And the hotel they put us in wasn't as nice as the Marbella. The food was decent.”

“How's Rafael?”

“He's good. He knows, by the way. That you're pregnant. I was so worked up when you told me, I couldn't keep a secret.”

Jane gently smacked Petra on the knee, but she smiled. “It's fine. I almost told my mom. I had to work so hard to not cry.”

“I did cry,” Petra mumbled. She turned her head away. She heard Jane chuckle.

“Because you're secretly a softy,” Jane said, leaning towards Petra's ear.

“Hm.”

“Yeah, you pretend to be so tough, but on the inside, you're a softy.” Jane suddenly nipped at Petra's ear, causing her to yelp.

“It's been two weeks,” Jane said, her mouth now on the side of Petra's neck.

“The kids are in the other room,” Petra noted, trying to not react to Jane's mouth.

“We can put them to bed.”

“Jane,” Petra started. Jane's tongue had found the sensitive spot where Petra's jaw met her neck and her eyes had drifted close. “If you are pregnant...”

“I can have sex during pregnancy. I read up on it. And in nine months, having sex will be much more difficult.”

It was a very convincing argument. And Petra really had no reason to say no.

“Mateo, Elsa, Anna, time for bed,” Petra called, suddenly turning away from Jane.

It turned out to be a challenge, because all three wanted a story read to them, which was a team effort because if it was a fairytale, Petra had to play the witch, while Jane always got to play the princess. Then, they wanted a Czech fairytale, which they first insisted she say it in Czech, but when they realized they couldn't understand her well enough, she had to repeat it in English.

“Okay, bed,” Petra finally said before they could ask for more. “I love you. Go to bed.”

She kissed each of them and had to tear Jane away from them after she kissed them. She pulled Jane into their room and quietly closed the door behind her. When she turned around, Jane was watching her with wet, puffy eyes.

“Jane? What is it?”

“I can't believe we made a baby,” Jane gasped.

Petra stepped forward and wiped the tears away from Jane's eyes with her thumbs, then kissed each of her cheeks. “It is amazing, isn't it?”

“I just can't stop thinking about this little person, made from science.”

“Well, technically, all babies are made from science. Biology. This baby is just a mix of modern technology and biology.”

Jane laughed. “You know what I mean. It's amazing, regardless.”

“Soon, this little bundle of cells will be a person,” Petra said, looking down at Jane's stomach. Despite the lack of a bump, Petra touched her stomach. “A person that will be both me and you.”

Jane placed her hand over Petra's. They stayed like that for some time; Petra staring at Jane's stomach and Jane staring at her. They kissed when Petra looked up and made eye contact with Jane. Very quickly after that Petra was on her back, Jane hungrily sucking at her neck. Petra was feeling conflicted at the moment; she was split between her own arousal and wanting to be gentle with Jane.

“Touch me,” Jane whispered into Petra's ear. “You won't hurt me. Or the baby.”

When Petra still hesitated, Jane grabbed Petra's wrist and put her own hand between her legs. When Petra actually did touch Jane, the soft moan that came from Jane spurred her on. 

Petra wondered if Jane was overly sensitive from hormones, because she came surprisingly quickly—just two minutes after Petra started touching her.

“Oh, jeez,” Jane panted, pressing a sweaty forehead to Petra's cheek. “Give me a minute.”

Jane bent down and lazily kissed Petra, as her body came down from its high. Then she gently took Petra's earlobe in her mouth, sucking softly. This was another sensitive area and Petra couldn't stop the moan from escaping her.

Like Jane, it didn't take long for Petra. Jane looked pretty proud of herself.

Jane curled up next to Petra and said something to her, but Petra was already half-asleep and didn't hear her. Petra was happy in that moment, not just because her body was humming with sexual energy, but also because in a few hours, they would know for sure if Jane was pregnant.


	5. Chapter 5

The next morning, before they went in for their appointment, seemed to take forever. Both Petra and Jane were anxious to find out if Jane was pregnant. Jane was pretty sure she was, claiming her breasts were tender. Petra, often realistic, kept her expectations at a reasonable level. Though, she was secretly confident as well.

There was something different about Jane that Petra couldn't fully explain. Something in her face. Petra decided it was her imagination and they would let the professionals tell them.

When they went in for the appointment, Jane clutched Petra's hand so tightly while the doctor did the blood tests. Then, when she came back, a smile betraying the news, Jane started crying. She kissed Petra's hand, over and over.

Petra could feel her cheeks ache and she fought back tears. She knew she had no reason to not cry, but she didn't like that the doctor was staring at her. She bent down and kissed Jane.

“Congratulations, Mommy,” Petra said.

“Congratulations to you, Mommy.”

“Okay, it's weird calling each other 'Mommy.'”

“Yeah,” Jane agreed.

“When do you think we should tell your family?”

“Well, they say twelve weeks is best.”

Petra sighed. “So, we have to keep this a secret for about 9 more weeks.”

“It'll go by fast, right?” Jane asked, sounding very skeptical. 

“Sure.”

Jane rubbed over her eyes and laughed. “They'll know. At least, Abuela will. My grandma has amazing pregnant radar. And she knows me well.”

“If you're feeling sick, just say one the kids brought home a stomach bug. I'll pretend to be sick too, if I have to.”

“I think, if they ask me point-blank if I'm pregnant, I'll tell them. Until then, I'll try to keep my mouth shut.”

Petra nodded in agreement.

For the first four weeks after that, it turned out to be pretty easy. Jane was feeling good and not showing any signs of pregnancy yet. Then, she was. Her lack of morning sickness with Mateo decided to hit her now. It wasn't as bad as Petra's (which Petra noted once to Jane, and didn't mention it again) but Jane was miserable.

“I blame your DNA,” Jane grumbled from the bed.

“Sorry,” Petra said, bringing Jane some tea. “I'm sure it'll be over soon.”

“When did your morning sickness end?”

Petra chewed her lip, hesitant to tell Jane. “It continued until I was six months along.”

“What?! I have to wait that long?” Jane's eyes bugged out and her mouth fell open.

“That was me, Jane! You'll be different, I'm sure.”

“You don't know that,” Jane sighed.

Xiomara had warned Petra how bad Jane got when she was sick. Xiomara used the word “bitch” and while Petra was hesitant to call Jane that, she did mentally agree.

Thankfully, by the next day, Jane was feeling better. She was still throwing up in the morning, but she was starting to bounce back more quickly after getting sick.

“It means the baby is growing,” Jane said a couple days later.

“There's that positive Jane attitude,” Petra said, happy that Jane wasn't being such a jerk.

“Am I showing at all?” Jane asked, lifting up her shirt.

Jane was nearly 8 weeks at this point. She was not showing.

“Do you want to be?”

“I don't know. I did love feeling my baby bump when I was pregnant with Mateo. Something about running my hand over it made it so much more real.”

“Speaking of which, the appointment is tomorrow.”

A wide grin spread across Jane's face. “We'll do a sonogram. We'll see the baby.”

“It's just a tiny thing right now.”

“Still. The heartbeat, Petra!” Jane reached out and gently shook Petra, the wide grin still there.

Jane's smile was infectious and Petra found herself smiling too.

The next day, with the kids in daycare, Jane and Petra went to their 8 week appointment. Jane hadn't thrown up that morning and was in a good mood.

“It feels like yesterday I was at the 8 week appointment for Mateo,” Jane said as she settled onto the chair, feet in stirrups. “He was just little peanut.”

The doctor then came in, did a vaginal exam on Jane, asked them both questions about their family history, and Jane's previous pregnancy. 

“Now, this is an unusual case,” the OBGYN said. “This is basically a medical marvel. And definitely the first one of its kind that I've dealt with.”

“Will it complicate things?” Petra asked.

“No, I don't think so. But let's have a look at that baby first.”

He spread the jelly on Jane stomach before waving the wand over it. He hummed softly as he looked at the monitor.

“Ah, there it is.”

“Where?” Petra squinted.

“There,” Jane said, pointing at the screen. “The little peanut thing.”

“She's right,” the doctor said. 

Then came the sound of the heartbeat. The fast wooshing noise made Petra's own heart beat faster.

“Oh, it's perfect,” Jane gasped, covering her mouth. “So strong. Right, Petra?”

Petra was transfixed on the screen. She couldn't stop staring at the tiny little creature. When she saw the ultrasound of the twins, it was a very different situation. She had mostly felt anxiety and some nausea. Now, she still felt those things, but she also felt excitement.

She didn't realize she was crying until a tear ran down her cheek. Jane grabbed her hand.

“And there's just one in there, right?” Jane asked.

“As far as I can tell. Do twins run in your family?”

“Identicals do,” Petra sighed.

“Well, identical twins would have split apart a while ago, so I think you're okay. Everything looks good. It looks like you have a very healthy baby.”

Jane sniffed loudly, thanked the doctor, and pressed Petra's hand to her lips.

That night in bed, Petra focused on Jane. Or, at least, tried to. Jane fell asleep halfway through, with Petra's head between her legs. Petra tried to not take it personally and told herself it was the pregnancy hormones.

Jane continued to be in a very good mood for the next week. Her morning sickness was subsiding, the kids were behaving themselves, and her family didn't suspect anything.

This didn't last long, though, because another pregnancy symptom moved in. 

“I haven't pooped in five days, Petra!” Jane whined as she came into Petra's office.

Petra, who was on the phone, cleared her throat, hoping the person on the other end didn't hear that, then hung up a minute later. She smiled sympathetically at her wife.

“I'm sorry, Jane. Have you tried--”

“I've tried everything!” Jane groaned and flopped down on the couch. “I'd ask my mom and grandma, but that would mean telling them, and we have more than two weeks left.”

“Can't you just tell them you're having this issue because of other reasons?”

“I've always been regular. They'll think there's something seriously wrong with me.”

Jane looked utterly miserable. When she had hit the three day mark, she was already a mess. That was one symptom Petra didn't have, and judging by Jane's demeanor, she was glad she didn't. She also didn't like the way Jane would glare at her everytime Petra went into the bathroom.

“And we have to go over there for dinner,” Jane sighed, sinking lower into the couch.

“We can cancel.”

“No, no. We haven't been over there in a while and they wanna see the kids. I think Dad got them presents.”

“He always gets them presents.”

“He really loves being a grandpa.”

“He is a very good grandfather,” Petra said honestly. She didn't have grandparents; her mother's parents passed away before she was born. If her grandparents were anything like Magda, it was probably for the best she didn't know them. But when she watched Rogelio with the kids, it made her feel like she was missing out. Still, Alba was like a grandmother to her, so it evened out.

“I think he's trying to make up for not really getting to be a father. I've forgiven my mom, but it does hurt a little bit; he would've been a great father.”

“Well, that's how he is now. You don't know what he was like as a teenager.”

Jane sat up a little bit and shrugged. “I guess that's true.”

“We both grew up without fathers and we turned out fine,” Petra said as she closed up her computer. Jane laughed.

“Yeah. So, should we go? Rafael said the kids are ready to go whenever.”

“Are you sure you're feeling okay? If you're uncomfortable--”

“I'm fine. Maybe Abuela's cooking will help. You know, some spicy food.”

Petra rose from her chair and walked over to Jane to help her up from the couch. Jane grabbed her hand and Petra hoisted her up. Petra then placed her hand on Jane's back.

“How about this. If nothing has... progressed by the end of dinner, I'll give you a stomach massage when we get home.”

“Do you think that'll work?”

“I don't know, but I'm guessing you're willing to try anything.”

“I am,” Jane conceded. “I feel like this is the worst symptom so far.”

“Really? Because it seems like when your morning sickness was bad was the worst. I think maybe you're having selective memory.”

Jane rolled her eyes. “Yeah, well, right now it feels like the worst. I just feel really crappy.”

“No pun intended?”

Jane paused, squinted at Petra, then laughed. “Oh, didn't even mean that. Nice catch. Anyway, we should go.”

They first swung by Rafael's room to pick up the kids, before they went to the Villanueva's. Before they walked in the door there was a delicious smell wafting through the door. Jane, however, stopped before she opened the door.

“Jane? What is it?”

“That smell,” Jane said, covering her nose. “I think I'm having a food aversion to it.”

“Do you feel sick?” Jane nodded, her face turning slightly green.

The kids were impatiently waiting to go inside, and Petra wasn't sure what to do. Her mind was made up when Rogelio suddenly opened the door.

“Kids!” He yelled, opening his arms wide so the kids could run into them.

“Papa!” They yelled. He pulled them into a bear hug.

“What are you two doing, just standing there? Come in!”

He carried all three children inside with him, while Jane and Petra followed him. Jane still didn't look good and was starting to take very controlled breaths. If Jane throws up, they'll know for sure.

“Janey,” Xiomara said happily and hugged her daughter. Then she hugged Petra. “It's good to see you two. Jane, are you okay?”

“Yeah,” Jane said a little bit too fast. “Yeah, I think I got a stomach bug from one of the kids.”

“Oh, Janey, then why did you come? You should be home resting. We could've rescheduled.”

Jane shook her head. “We've been putting it off for too long. It's fine.”

Xiomara didn't look convinced and she gave Petra a look, but she moved on. She asked Petra some questions about work, then asked Jane about her next book.

“I want to try a futuristic story this time. Like, 500 years in the future. There's some war going on. I don't know, I haven't completely figured it out yet.”

“Well, it sounds really interesting. Has Petra given you any tips?”

“Oh, I'm not much of a writer, especially for romance.”

Jane put her hand on Petra's upper shoulder. “Oh, you're plenty romantic. Ma, a couple months ago, Petra surprised me with a candlelit dinner on the beach. Isn't that sweet?”

“And then you had sex on the beach,” Xiomara said, grinning.

“What? No, Ma! We didn't have sex on the beach.”

They had sex in the Marbella shortly after that, but Petra wasn't about to tell Xiomara that.

“So, Xiomara, how's the dancing coming?” Petra asked.

“Oh! I got a gig at a dance hall downtown,” Xiomara grinned. “I checked it out and it's a really nice place, and the pay is really good.”

“Ma, that's so great! We'll definitely have to come and see.”

Alba then announced it was time for dinner. Rogelio came in the room with a twin hanging on each arm and Mateo on his back.

“Rogelio, you're gonna throw your back out. You're not as young, and neither are the kids,” Xiomara sighed.

“Oh, Xiomara, I'm fine.” He did, however, grunt when he let the kids back down onto the floor.

As they got started on dinner, Petra kept glancing at Jane, who still didn't look great. She was eating very slowly and she looked like she was either going to throw up or pass out. Maybe both. Rogelio was telling a story, so the attention was on him, thankfully.

Petra placed her hand on Jane's knee under the table and rubbed gently. Jane acknowledged it with a weak smile. Petra, who used to get some pleasure from watching people suffer (people who had caused her to suffer in the first place), Jane being no exception in the past, hated seeing Jane so uncomfortable. This pregnancy was already taking its toll on Jane, and they were only nine weeks in.

When they finished dinner—Jane had forced down half of it—they went into the living room to talk more. Rogelio got down on the floor and wrestled with the kids. Petra, Jane, and Alba sat on the couch, while Xiomara sat in a chair.

Alba was telling Petra a story about before she came to the United States, and she and Petra started trading “coming to America” stories.

“I was so nervous. I had only seen America in old reruns of sitcoms from the 70s and 80s. I felt like a girl coming over on a steamer ship in at the turn of the century, but we came by plane.”

Alba told her she came by boat. A small boat, with maybe fifty other people.

“It was a shock coming to Miami. The Czech Republic isn't terrible, but it can be cold and dreary. Nothing like Miami. It took me a while to adjust, I was always really warm in the beginning.”

Alba admitted the climate wasn't much different. Petra chuckled, then she felt Jane flop against her. She was asleep. Petra tried to remain calm as she looked at Xiomara and Alba, because fatigue was another pregnancy symptom.

“That's some bug,” Xiomara said. Her tone was weird. Petra froze; did she know?

“Yeah, I think some kid in maybe the twins' class had some thing. I had it a little bit last week.”

Don't overshare, Petra told herself. That was a clear sign of lying. Xiomara hummed softly, her eyes scanning Petra, then glanced at her daughter. Petra kept her face steely.

Rogelio, bless him, managed to change the subject when he brought out the gifts for the kids. Mateo got a build your own model plane, Anna got a watergun (Petra thanked him through clenched teeth), and Elsa got some books, to help her with her reading.

Jane then woke up, looking confused.

“We're at your parents',” Petra whispered to her.

“Oh, um, sorry.” Jane's face turned red. Then she saw the gifts Rogelio got the kids. “Dad, a watergun, really?”

“She wanted one! We walked past a store sometime ago and said, 'Papa, I want that watergun.' How could I say no?”

“You just say no,” Jane sighed. “I think if you raised me too, I'd be a brat.”

Rogelio put his hand on his chest and gasped. Dramatics was Rogelio's thing, but Petra realized he was exaggerating his reaction for the kids' benefit, because he smiled at them.

“Do you see how your mother treats me?”

“Be nice, Mama!” Anna said, pointing at Jane accusingly.

“I am being nice!”

Anna put her hands on her hips and looked a lot like Petra. Well, Petra didn't notice this until Xiomara said: “She looks just like Petra! But that judgey little scowl looks like Jane. You know, it's a shame you two can't have biological kids, because they'd be pretty cute.”

Petra didn't react. Jane, however, tensed slightly next to her. It probably wasn't enough for her family to notice, but Petra noticed.

“Isn't it, though? You would think they'd figure that out by now,” Petra said, making herself sound a little bit irritated.

Xiomara gave her a weird look again but thankfully dropped it. After having dessert, and playing with Rogelio some more, the kids were crashing, and so was Jane.

“I think it's time to go,” Petra said. “Thank you for a lovely dinner, Alba.”

“De nada,” Alba said warmly. She hugged Petra, then hugged Jane and the kids.

After they all said their goodbyes and got into the car, the kids and Jane promptly fell asleep. Petra glanced at Jane and looked at the kids through the rearview mirror, and smiled.

When they got back, Jane woke up enough to help put the kids to bed. Too tired to actually change, Jane just stripped off her clothes and climbed onto the bed. Petra changed into a tanktop and shorts.

“Do you still want me to rub your stomach?” Petra asked as she approached the bed.

Jane nodded, her eyes closed. “I may fall asleep, though.”

“That's fine.”

Petra hovered over Jane and gently massaged her belly. When she got to the middle, she was able to feel what she assumed was Jane's uterus. While she wasn't showing, Petra could feel the slight hardness of it. She gently ran her hand around the edge of it.

“What are you doing?” Jane asked, her eyes still closed.

Petra stopped. “Nothing.”

“Are you feeling my bump?”

“Perhaps.”

“Yeah, I just noticed it the other day.” Jane opened her eyes and grinned at Petra. “It's so exciting.”

“Even though this baby is making you constipated?” 

“Yeah, of course. I mean, it's annoying, but it'll be over with soon. Hopefully.”

“Hm.” Petra rolled her hands around Jane's stomach. Jane sighed. “I'm not even sure if I'm doing this right, or if this is even helping.”

“It still feels nice.”

Jane had closed her eyes again, so Petra leaned down and kissed Jane. Jane's mouth curled into a smile against her lips.

“Kudos to you for trying to make this strange moment romantic.”

“The things married couples do for each other,” Petra said, pulled away a little bit.

Petra continued this until Jane fell asleep, then she curled up beside Jane, her head resting in the crook between her chin and shoulders.

When Petra woke up the next morning, Jane wasn't in bed. A moment later, Jane stepped out of the bathroom, looking pretty happy.

“Everything alright?” Petra asked, leaning on her elbow.

Jane's only response was a thumbs up.


	6. Chapter 6

When Jane got to the 12 week mark, they decided to wait another week before telling anyone, just to be safe. Jane had an ultrasound, complete with a much clearer image of the baby, now starting to look like a human. Jane was starting to show a little, so the sooner they tell Jane's family, the better.

“I think it looks like you,” Jane said, squinting at the image.

“Really? I think it has your wavy black lines.”

Jane laughed sarcastically. “So, my mom said they'll be over at seven.”

“Do you think they'll take this well?”

“I mean, what can they say? They love Mateo and the twins, they love us, why wouldn't they be excited?”

“You never know.”

“Well, I think they'll be excited.” Jane then repeated this again under her breath, her gaze turned away from Petra. Before Petra could attempt to say anything comforting—whatever that may be—Jane turned away and started focusing on the preparation of the food.

Before Petra stepped away, she watched Jane, who was now humming, hopping from pot to pot. Her stomach was starting to round out a little bit. Petra always thought the term “glowing” referring to pregnant women was stupid. Petra was just sweaty when she was pregnant with the twins, that was the closest to glowing she ever got. But watching Jane, Petra could see it. Jane really was glowing.

Getting the kids ready for the dinner was a challenge. Anna and Mateo just wanted to run around, and Elsa was in a bad mood about something. It took nearly an hour to actually get them dressed. Jane was normally pretty patient, but at thirteen weeks of pregnancy, it was thin. Luckily, Petra had gotten pretty good at reading Jane.

“Jane, sweetie,” Petra said in her gentlest voice when she could see that vein in Jane's forehead pulse. “Why don't you check on the food?”

Jane took a deep breath and ran her hands over her stomach. She didn't say anything for a minute and looked very worn out. Petra took a moment to decide what kind of comforting Jane wanted before walking over to her and wrapping her arms around her.

“I'm tired, Petra. This pregnancy is hard,” Jane sighed.

“I know, Jane. I'm sorry.” Petra pressed her cheek to Jane's forehead.

The doorbell rang and Jane tensed. Petra rubbed her nails into Jane's back before letting go. “It'll be fine,” Petra said, smiling.

Normally Jane would give her a classic, wide Jane smile, but this one was halfhearted. She turned and walked into the kitchen, while Petra answered the door.

Rogelio hugged her first, as always, then Xiomara, and Alba.

“It has been too long, Petra,” Rogelio said. “Now, where are the kids?”

On cue, three children stampeded into the room, chorusing “papa!” and Rogelio scooped all three of them up.

“Ay dios mio, you guys are getting big,” Rogelio said, putting them down. “Especially you, Matelio.”

“I grew two inches, Papa,” Mateo informed him.

“Wow! Before we know it, you will be taller than me!”

“What about me, Papa?” Anna asked, clearly annoyed Mateo was the only one being spoken to.

“Maybe! You have tall parents,” Rogelio said before glancing at Petra.

Petra took that as her cue. “Okay, Jane has been working very hard on dinner, so if you'll join us in the dining room.”

They all followed her there, where Jane was conveniently standing behind the table, blocking her stomach.

“Janie, why're you hiding back there?” Xiomara asked. Petra may have imagined it, but it looked like Xiomara's eyes flickered down.

“Just busy in the kitchen,” Jane said with a smile. It was a tight smile and if Petra could see it, Xiomara definitely could see it.

“Please, sit,” Petra said. There was too much standing around and it was making her nervous. As soon as they sat down, Jane sat down, followed by Petra. Rogelio, Alba, and Xiomara each served one of the kids before helping themselves. Petra glanced at Jane, who, sensing Petra's gaze, looked at Petra and flashed her another weak smile. Petra hated seeing Jane like this and squeezed Jane's hand under the table.

When everyone started eating, Petra could tell Jane was relaxing a little bit. The kids were behaving with Rogelio there, and the dinner was going well. Then, it was over, and Petra looked at Jane again. When Jane looked at her, Jane nodded.

“Uh, guys, before we do anything else, there's something I want to say,” Jane said. She cleared her throat a couple times. Her family looked at her expectantly. She looked at the kids. “Mateo, Elsa, Anna, Mama's gonna have another baby.”

Alba and Rogelio gasped, but Xiomara grinned. “I knew it.”

“You what?” Jane blinked at her mother.

“Janie, I'm your mom. You didn't think I wouldn't know?”

“You're gonna have a baby?!” Anna shouted. “Another one?!”

Petra expected this, but she still wished Anna wouldn't react like this, but Anna started crying. Threw herself down on the floor and started crying. Mateo and Elsa looked each other, and Mateo grinned.

“Mama, that's cool! Can I have a brother?”

“We'll see, sweetie,” Jane said. Now she was smiling, really smiling.

Rogelio got up and picked up Anna, who hadn't calmed down yet. He cooed something in Spanish to her. “You'll get to be a big sister now, Anna. Instead of just the little sister, yes?”

Anna sniffed loudly, then looked at Rogelio. “I guess, Papa...”

He then whispered to her, but Petra could still hear him, “someone else you can boss around.”

“Rogelio,” Petra sighed.

“I'm kidding, Petra,” he said with a laugh. She wasn't so sure he was kidding.

“So, you don't have to answer this, but... who's the donor? I thought Rafael's sample was done.”

Jane started clearing her throat again, so Petra cut in. “I am.”

“...I'm sorry?” Xiomara squinted her eyes and looked between Jane and Petra, then Alba, then back to Petra.

“It's a new procedure, but they can take stem cells from bone marrow, then turn those into sperm cells. I don't know all the details, but it worked and...” Petra gestured to Jane's stomach.

“So the baby is...”

“Biologically related to me and Petra, yes,” Jane jumped in. 

Now Petra was feeling nervous as Jane's family exchanged glances with each other. Somebody needed to say something. Then, Xiomara got up, rounded the table, and hugged Jane.

“I'm so happy for you, Jane. I'm so happy for both of you.”

“I am, too,” Rogelio said. “Another grandchild to spoil!”

Jane looked at Alba, and Petra followed her eye. Alba had been very quiet and Jane had been the most nervous about her reaction.

Her lips were pursed and she was looking at Xiomara. Xiomara was still hugging Jane and was looking at her mother hopefully. Then, Alba stood up and crossed over to Jane. She put her hand on Jane's cheek.

“No voy a pretender que esto no es extraño, pero esto es maravilloso. Felicitaciones, mi amor. No puedo esperar para conocer a mi próximo nieto.”

She kissed Jane on the forehead and Jane smiled, tearfully, at her grandmother. “Thanks, Abuela.”

“How far along are you?” Xiomara asked.

“Thirteen weeks. Ma, this pregnancy is exhausting. Mateo was so easy.”

“I'm sorry, sweetie. If you need anything, let me know.”

“Sé que algunos remedios. Cuando estaba embarazada de Xiomara tuve un dolor de espalda constante, por lo que he encontrado algunas soluciones. ¿Está comiendo bien?”

“Yes, Abuela. Petra's been helpful with that.”

“Gracias, Petra.”

“De nada.”

“Well, I said this before I actually knew what was happening, but I still mean it, especially since I know it's now possible, but this kid will be very cute. Not that Mateo, Elsa, and Anna aren't cute,” Xiomara added when said kids were staring at her.

*

The remaining months of Jane's pregnancy went by fast. Probably because Petra was becoming increasingly nervous. As she watched Jane's stomach grow, her trepidation began to grow, just like when she was pregnant with the twins. It felt different, though. Petra was already a parent, so she wasn't sure where this anxiety was coming from.

She didn't want to let Jane know about this, though, because as soon as Jane's exhaustion went away, her enthusiasm returned. Despite the fact she was much larger, she seemed to be moving around much more easily.

“Have you thought about names?” Xiomara asked when she was visiting one day. Jane was seven months at this point.

“We have,” Jane said cryptically, smiling at Petra.

“Yeah? Do you know the gender?”

“Well, you can't really find out the gender. That's up for the child to decide. But we can find out what genitals it has, which we do not know.”

Xiomara narrowed her eyes and looked at Petra.

“Jane took a gender studies class,” Petra explained.

“Ah. So, names. I wouldn't be offended if you wanted to name the baby Xiomara.”

“We're not gonna say what names we're thinking about, Ma. It'll be a surprise.”

“Yeah, I know, but if it isn't already in the options; Xiomara.”

Jane rolled her eyes and smiled. Xiomara then leaned forward and ran her hands over Jane's stomach.

“I can't get over how amazing this is. Technology, man. We don't even really need men now. Except for sex, but even that can be replaced sometimes. And you two don't need men for sex.”

“Ma.”

Xiomara didn't apologize, she was too focused on Jane's belly. It was a pretty active child, almost always moving around. Jane had gotten used to it, but when Jane was pressed up against Petra in bed, Petra could feel the child stirring. Petra considered herself to be more maternal than she used to be, but sometimes she fell into her awkward patterns. She had brought one hand over to rest on Jane's belly and just held it there, not really sure what to do next. 

When the fetus had tapped against her hand, she gasped, too loudly and woke up Jane.

“What is it?” Jane had asked, sitting straight up, startled. “Are the kids okay?”

“Yeah, sorry, the baby scared me,” Petra had mumbled.

Jane knew Petra well enough to not laugh. “Why?”

“It's just... a little person, who will be here soon.” Petra's voice had come out quiet but raspy.

Jane smiled in a way that was both sympathetic and told Petra she was being silly. “It'll be fine.” 

There was still a knot in Petra's stomach, but it went away a little bit. Jane had wrapped her arms around Petra, pulling them both down.

At six months, there was a complication. There was some bleeding and Jane was ordered to go on bedrest until the issue was determined and taken care of. While Jane was more than willing to make sure the baby was okay, she also hating sitting still.

More times than Petra could count that she found Jane out of bed, fussing about something regarding the kids. And more times than Petra could count that she had to force Jane back into bed.

“I need to do something,” Jane sighed.

“Yeah, make sure our baby doesn't die.”

Petra regretted that immediately because as soon as she said it, Jane looked like she had been stabbed in the heart. “I just mean, you need to rest. The kids are fine, and we want to make sure this kid is okay too.”

“Will you make me a grilled cheese?” Jane asked.

“Of course.”

It took Petra two years before she was able to make a grilled cheese that Jane liked. To Petra, it shouldn't be that complicated to take bread, cheese, and fry it. It really shouldn't. To Jane Gloriana Villanueva, it was. For two years, Jane would immediately betray the fact she didn't like the sandwich, but still eat it.

Petra wasn't actually sure if she had improved, or Jane's taste buds were affected by the pregnancy, because now, everytime Jane ate one of the sandwiches, she grinned like it was the best thing ever.

Today was no exception. She moaned softly as she ate the sandwich.

“Thank you, Petra. This makes the bedrest a little bit better.”

“You're welcome, Jane.”

Petra had no meetings that day (she made sure of that) so she was able to spend the day in bed with Jane. They spent the day watching telenovelas, Petra gave Jane some ideas of things to write about, Rafael brought the kids over for a bit. Jane was forgetting that she had to spend the next two weeks in bed.

Then they got a visitor they hadn't seen in a while, over a year, in fact. Luisa Alver. 

Shortly after Jane and Petra's wedding, Luisa disappeared. Again. 

She had somehow gotten word that Jane was pregnant and called one evening that she wanted to see them, that she was excited to meet her new niece or nephew. She rambled on before Jane could tell her the baby wasn't genetically Rafael's, then hung up after setting a time and date.

Luisa was bright-eyed when they opened the door. She looked tan, like she had been somewhere with a lot of sun. She leaned down and hugged Jane, then Petra, then put her hands on Jane's belly.

“Hello, niece or nephew,” she cooed, her face now right in front of Jane's stomach.

Jane laughed awkwardly. “Uh, Luisa?”

“Yeah?”

“The baby isn't Rafael's.”

Luisa frowned then looked up at Jane. “You found another donor?”

Jane exchanged glances with Petra. “Sort of.”

Luisa stood up and looked between them. Then, she stepped closer to Jane, her face inches away from Jane's, looking very serious. “Jane, did you have sex with a man?”

Jane let out a laugh that sounded like a cough. “What?”

“Is that what you mean by a sort of donor? Did you guys, like, make some agreement?”

“Luisa, what the hell are you talking about?” Petra asked, crossing her arms.

“So... no?”

“No!” Petra had fight from rolling her eyes. Luisa had not changed. “I'm the donor.”

“You.” Luisa pointed at Petra, then at Jane's stomach. “You?”

“Yes,” Jane said gently, seeing Luisa's confusion. “Sit down and we'll tell you.”

After they explained it all, Luisa nodded. “I've heard of that.”

“Then why did you sound so surprised?” Petra asked. She didn't mean to sound so annoyed, but it came out that way.

Luisa shrugged. “You said it so cryptically. Anyway, even though I'm not technically this baby's aunt, can I still be Aunt Luisa?”

“Of course, Luisa,” Jane said with a grin.

“You should name it Luisa. Or Luis.”

“No,” Petra said.

“Aw.” Luisa hooked her arm around Petra's neck. “I missed you guys.”

Jane laughed softly at Petra. “We missed you too, Luisa. What've you been up to?”

“Oh,” Luisa leaned back on the couch. “What haven't I been up to?”

Jane and Petra looked at Luisa expectantly, so she went on. “I've been in Costa Rica, running my practice down there. It's pretty great. Lots of gorgeous women.”

“What made you want to go to Costa Rica?” Jane asked.

Luisa's eyes shifted sideways, away from the other two women. She licked her lips.

“Luisa?”

“Uh,” Luisa smiled sheepishly.

Petra looked at Luisa closely. “This has something to do with Rose, doesn't it?”

Luisa made a non-committal grunting noise. 

“Luisa, are you with Rose?”

“No,” Luisa said honestly, looking at Petra. “No, I'm actually not. But, I was when I left. We broke up a couple months ago. I see her sometimes—not sexually—and she's dating this girl.”

“Hm,” Petra hummed.

“Don't give me that look, Petra,” Luisa said. “We're not dating.”

“And not having sex?”

“No. We haven't had sex in like a month.”

“You said you broke up a couple months ago.”

Luisa pursed her lips and Petra rolled her eyes. Jane patted Luisa's knees, trying to be comforting. 

“You know how I feel about Rose, Luisa. I think, well, yeah, you know how I feel. If you are sleeping with or dating her, as long as you're happy and taking care of yourself...” Jane said softly.

“I'm being careful. I had a long talk with Rose and I think she understands. Anyway, I can't wait to meet this little boo-boo,” Luisa cooed into Jane's stomach. “Sometimes I want kids, but other times I'm happy just being an aunt and stopping in and spoiling my nieces and nephew.”

“We have enough family members spoiling them,” Petra said with a grunt.

Jane elbowed her. “Oh, like you don't spoil them sometimes.”

“I do not spoil them.”

Jane gave Petra a look, then a look at Luisa, who, while she didn't know all the details, still looked like she agreed with Jane. “The motorized cars for each of our children?”

Petra pressed her lips together. Jane was giving her that “I told you so” look, which she didn't care for.

All that came out was a “hm.”

~~~

The first time Jane was pregnant, her relationship with Petra was complicated. The sperm sample that was meant for Petra (even though Rafael didn't know what she was planning) went to Jane (without Jane's knowledge). Petra wanted to hate Jane, and before they met, she did hate her.

Then she met Jane Gloriana Villanueva. She wanted to hate her, but she couldn't. She had felt this strange softness for this girl that she couldn't explain. That said, even then it wasn't all sunshine. She still felt this great irritation for Jane because she seemed to be getting everything Petra wanted. Mainly Rafael.

It was a slow process of them becoming friends, but once they were friends, it slowly bloomed into something else. Something neither of them realized was happening. Petra realized it first.

It was weird to think back on, especially with Jane being pregnant again. The circumstances were so much different. Petra wasn't scheming to get this baby to save her marriage, because the baby was hers, as well as her significant other's. And the fact that said significant other was the women she was trying to get away from her husband, the women whom she loved very much.

At seven month pregnant Jane glided around the house, given the all clear from the doctor, picking up stray items off of the floor, Petra was in awe, both from how amazing Jane was and how much she loved this women. Sometimes it just hit her, just how much she loved Jane.

Petra knew the sex of the baby, but Jane refused to find out.

“I don't want to put gendered expectations on this child before it's even born!” Jane had said. “We can design the nursery, but let's do it gender neutral, even though you know.”

So Petra agreed, and went with the classic yellows and greens, which she preferred anyway.

Lucky for Jane, Petra was a good liar, so as they discussed names and Jane said “if it's a girl” or “if it's a boy” Petra was able to keep a straight face.

While they discussed names, Petra made sure the names weren't popular movie character names.

“Elsa and Anna are good names,” Petra said stubbornly. “They're good Germanic names.”

“I know, Petra.” Jane patted Petra's hand. “They're very nice names.”

“I was thinking, Jane,” Petra started slowly. “Since you're carrying the child, putting your body through all this, that you should get to pick the name.”

“Oh, Petra.” Jane pulled Petra's hand towards her. “It should be both of us. I mean, I got to pick Mateo's name.”

“Exactly. Mateo's a great name.”

“Okay, how about this: I give you the options, but you can say if you don't like them or not.”

“That's fair.”

Jane played with Petra's fingers. “Do you like your name?”

Petra shrugged, a little confused. “I guess so. I mean, I did sort of pick it...”

Jane shook her head. “No, I mean your birth name. Natalia?”

It always sounded weird when Jane said her birth name. Hearing Jane's American, but slightly Hispanic, accent say her name, versus the Czech and German accents she remembered as a child, always threw her a little bit. She almost preferred the name when Jane said it. It sounded much more gentle.

“I have mixed feelings about it,” Petra said honestly. “My childhood wasn't the greatest, and too often I heard that name from my mother or,” Petra bared her teeth, “Milos.”

Jane nodded. “I understand.”

“Why? Were you thinking about that name?”

Jane chewed on the corner of her lip. “Maybe. For a middle name.”

Petra was silent for a moment. “I'll think about it.”

“How about you pick the middle name and I pick the first name?”

“That works too.”

“Hey, you didn't argue about the gender of Natalia,” Jane pointed out. “Was that a hint?”

“A hint, or,” Petra grinned, “I'm just a good liar.”

Jane narrowed her eyes at Petra, trying to read her, but quickly gave up.

“Natalia is a fine name, I just have a lot of history with it,” Petra said after a brief silence.

Jane ran her finger over Petra's and smiled at her. “I know you don't like to talk about your past much, but you wanna talk at all, let me know.”

“You always say that,” Petra said, but she couldn't help but smile a little bit.

“Just in case you need a reminder that I'm always here for you,” Jane said before kissing Petra.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, Luisa. I ship Rose/Luisa quite a bit, but I also recognize its issues, so I compromised. I doubt they won't stay apart though.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is a little short, but I promise to not take a month to post the next chapter.

Jane was having pains and some bleeding and Petra felt sick out of concern. It seemed worse than before, when Jane was put on bedrest the first time. Jane was now at eight months, and while the baby would likely be okay being born at this point, the doctor wanted to wait.

Normally Petra wouldn't be so concerned, but Jane wasn't looking well. She looked even worse than at the beginning of her pregnancy. She was tired and pale (her blood pressure was low). 

“I'm sorry I complained before,” Jane mumbled in bed. “That was nothing.”

“You can complain about whatever you want, Jane,” Petra said softly. Petra had curled up beside her, her hand resting on Jane's large belly. She could feel the baby moving around.

“My back,” Jane moaned.

“Move to your side,” Petra instructed and Jane did so.

Petra had become very good at giving backrubs, as Jane needed them frequently. She had long fingers, which proved useful. Sometimes it involved Jane sitting up with Petra kneeling behind her, but this time it was Jane on her side with Petra also on her side, but behind her. It was awkward for Petra, the way she had to bend her arms. But when Jane sighed contently, Petra ignored her own discomfort.

Jane fell asleep shortly after Petra started, so Petra stopped but stayed in that position for a little bit. She called Luisa—who for some reason, was still in town—to come and stay with Jane (the kids were with their grandmothers and grandfather) while she went to a meeting with Rafael.

When Luisa got there, she had a funny look on her face. Petra almost didn't ask what was wrong, but the way Luisa kept sighing.

“What is it, Luisa?”

Luisa clasped and unclasped her hands a few times. Her face turned red.

“I slept with Rose.”

Petra had to bite back a groan, because she figured Luisa already felt bad for it. Instead she just said, “Luisa.”

“I know! I know, it's stupid, but she came back, and we talked, then I kissed her, and well,” Luisa shrugged, her thumbnail in her mouth.

“It escalated like that? Talking, kissing, fucking?”

Luisa shrugged. “That's how it usually goes for us.”

“Well, don't tell Jane. She doesn't need the stress. Rose is not allowed to come near this baby, okay? Or any of the kids.”

Luisa nodded. “Of course.”

Petra now felt weird for leaving, because she kept imagining Rose showing up at their house. Jane had told her when Rose kidnapped Mateo almost immediately after he was born, how it was the worst moment of her life, finding out that her newborn son was missing. Jane cried talking about it.

The meeting with Rafael was mostly just deciding if the banquet hall should be redone. They decided that it should, that it was in their budget.

“How's Jane?” Rafael asked when they were done.

“Not great,” Petra said honestly. “She's tired and achy. She's been put on bedrest again, likely until the baby is born.”

“Anything I can do?”

“Not really. Watch the kids as much as you can. Jane feels bad she can't play with them right now, so it makes her feel better when the kids are actually out and doing things.”

“Are the kids excited?”

Petra laughed. Jane and Petra had tried to explain where babies came from, but because of the strange circumstances of each of the conceptions, it got muddled. They attempted to avoid the word “natural” when referring to the standard way of conceiving, because they didn't want to suggest that any other kind of conception was unnatural. This conception was especially confusing, especially since Jane and Petra didn't fully understand it themselves.

At first Jane and Petra were hesitant to use the more technical terms. Petra had remembered when Magda gave her her sex education. Magda had used all the proper terms, but she was also too blunt. 

Petra was six at the time and almost started crying. Sex hurts, is what Magda told her, and that sex is inevitable when you're with a man.

That was not how the conversation with the kids went. But they did use more technical terms, then they explained the baby was going to eventually come out.

Naturally the kids (Anna, mostly) assumed one method. Petra assured them that no, Mama was not going to poop the baby out. But that also meant telling them how the baby was getting out. Petra decided to spare them the details of how much it would hurt, because they already looked horrified at the idea of how the baby was coming out.

Then they took the kids to the beach and it was mostly forgotten.

That was about a month ago. Just a week ago, Anna announced that the baby should “go back to the sperm.” She had decided she didn't want another sibling and that it should go back to somewhere else. When they explained the baby couldn't go back and it was coming no matter what, she cried.

“They're handling it well,” Petra finally said. “Mateo's technically the oldest, but he wasn't even a year old when the twins were born, so he doesn't remember when they were born. This is new to all of them.”

“Luisa said she cried when she found out her stepmother was having me,” Rafael said. “She took it hard enough that she even had a stepmother.”

“A stepmother she couldn't fuck,” Petra whispered before she could stop herself.

Rafael gaped at her, then he closed his mouth and Petra could see the vein popping in his neck.

“Sorry.”

He sighed. “Well, at least that's in the past.”

Petra paused a little bit too long before saying, “Right.”

“Petra,” Rafael said calmly, too calmly, and quietly, “are they having sex again?”

Petra grunted. She didn't want to talk about this. This was Luisa and Rose's business. She didn't want to talk about their sex-life. 

“As long as Luisa is happy,” Petra said with an eyeroll. 

“Rose killed our father, she shot Michael, she kidnapped Mateo,” Rafael snapped.

“Yes. But that's Luisa's business. If she wants to have sex with Rose, that's her prerogative. Do I agree with it? No, of course not, but she's an adult.”

The vein in Rafael's neck popped and he squared his jaw. 

“She'll get mad at me if I try to talk to her about it,” Rafael said in a soft voice, some of the redness in his face fading away.

Petra sighed. “If she seems in pain at all, or shows signs of relapsing, I'll talk to her. I'll try to talk to her. I do have a lot going on right now, Raf.”

“I know,” he sighed. “It's just, Luisa may make mistakes, do really stupid things, but she's my sister. Other than the kids, she's the only family I have left.”

“I know.” Petra reached towards Rafael and took his hand. “I'll keep an eye out for her. But Raf,” she waited until he looked up at her, “Jane and I are your family, too.”

“I know,” he said with a soft smile.

When she got back to the house, Alba, Xiomara, and Rogelio were there, with the kids. Jane was sleeping, so they had the kids in the living room. Luisa was still upstairs.

The kids all came over and hugged Petra around her legs

“Mommy, my tooth fell out,” Mateo told her, showing her the gap.

“Ooh, that's exciting,” Petra said. “Did it hurt?”

“No. Anna pulled it out.”

“Did you ask her to?” Petra asked, looking down at her daughter.

“No, but it's okay,” Mateo said cheerfully. “It was annoying.”

“Is Mama okay?” Elsa asked. “She's sleeping.”

Petra crouched down to be at eye-level with Elsa. “Yes, she's just very tired. The baby is getting big.”

“When's the baby gonna come out?” Anna asked, tugging on her mother's arm.

“Soon.”

“How soon? Like tomorrow?”

Petra thought, 'hopefully not.' “No, not tomorrow. Probably in a couple weeks.”

“That's forever,” Anna pouted.

“Oh, so you want the baby to come now?”

Anna frowned, looking like Petra, Petra was pretty sure. Petra turned to Xiomara.

“How's Jane?”

“Tired, but I think she's okay,” Xiomara sighed. “She's tough.”

“I wonder if they should just induce and get this baby out,” Petra said. “I hate seeing her like this.”

“She still has a month to go.”

“Exactly. I don't want her going through this for a month. She's tough, but she has her limits. And if the baby is anything like Jane, it'll be tough too.”

Xiomara looked at her mother. “I mean, yeah, I guess. I was born early, wasn't I, Ma?”

“Tres semanas. Ella era muy pequeño, pero muy bonito. Y fuerte.”

“And that was...” Xiomara mumbled a number, “years ago. Technology is so much more different now. I think you should talk to Jane and see how she feels about that.”

Petra nodded in agreement. She went upstairs and quietly entered their room. Luisa was curled up on the bed, next to Jane. They were both asleep. Petra found herself smiling a little bit. She crawled onto the bed and laid down beside Luisa, and closed her eyes.

She didn't really sleep, but she dozed for a while. She was out of it enough that she didn't feel two arms encircle her. Assuming it was Jane, she held onto the arms.

Then she heard a giggle. When she opened her eyes, she saw Luisa's sleeping face close to hers, then when she looked over Luisa's head, she saw Jane, who was sitting up and awake, grinning at her.

“I don't know how I should feel about this.”

Petra carefully untangled herself from Luisa and sat up. With Luisa in between them, she had to reach over Luisa to touch Jane's shoulder.

“How're you feeling?”

“Better,” Jane said. She did look better. Less pale, and her eyes seemed brighter. “Did you think Luisa was me? Or is there something going on between you two?”

Jane was teasing her. Petra rolled her eyes. “You're changing the subject.”

“I feel fine, Petra,” Jane said with a soft laugh.

“Good, because there's something I want to talk to you about.” Petra exhaled sharply. “I think you should induce.”

“When?”

“As soon as possible. I mean, if the baby is mature enough. I just hate seeing you so worn out.”

Jane took Petra's hand. “Petra, I'm eight months pregnant, being worn out comes with the territory.”

Petra gripped Jane's hand tightly. Her eyes stung all of the sudden. “It seems worse than that, Jane. I just hate the idea of...”

Petra stopped and couldn't bring herself to say more. Maybe she was being dramatic, maybe Jane's pregnancy hormones were somehow contagious. 

“I'm not going to die, Petra,” Jane said in her softest voice. That's when they started, the tears. Petra couldn't stop herself as tears started streaming down her face. In an attempt to stop them, she pressed the heels of her hands against her eyes.

Jane, who was eight months pregnant and blocked by Luisa, sat up and tried to lean over Luisa to put Petra into a hug. Tried being the key word because it was awkward. Jane had to settle for gripping Petra's upper arms.

“I'm not going to die, Petra,” Jane whispered. “I've given birth before.”

“I know,” Petra choked out. “I know, but I still don't want anything happening to you.”

“I'll be fine,” Jane said firmly. She put her finger underneath Petra's chin and tipped her head up. “I promise.”

“You can't promise that, Jane,” Petra huffed, the tears flowing less now.

“Well, I'm gonna.” With tremendous effort, Jane leaned forward more to kiss Petra. It was a quick kiss because Petra wanted Jane to lie back down. Before she did, though, Luisa suddenly woke up and jumped at the sight of a large belly in her face.

“Whoa, what's happening?”

Jane moved back and laughed. She hadn't laughed like that in a while and Petra found herself smiling.

“You feeling better, Jane?” Luisa asked. “You look better?”

“Yeah, much. Um, Luisa? Petra had a suggestion. That I should induce.”

“You still have a month, Jane. While the baby would probably be fine being born now, if the baby can continue to stay in the womb, it should. Every little moment in there is good.”

Jane ran her hands over her stomach and looked at Petra. Petra felt better than before, especially seeing Jane feeling better, but she still was nervous. Is this what fathers felt like?

“It's up to you, Jane,” Petra said finally.

 

Jane looked between the two women on her bed. “Let's wait at least another week and see how everything is going.”

Petra nodded silently. There was a hand on hers; it wasn't Jane.

“I may not be a real OBGYN anymore, but in my professional opinion, Jane will be okay. She's a tough girl,” Luisa grinned. She then took Jane's hand. “I never thought I'd be in bed with two gorgeous ladies—non-straight ladies at that—and no sex is happening.”

Petra rolled her eyes and Jane giggled. Then Jane gasped and Petra and Luisa were at attention.

“What is it?” Petra asked.

“Pains?”

Jane laughed and put her hand on her belly. “No, it kicked. It must have just woken up.”

Both Petra and Luisa reached over to touch Jane's stomach. There was the definite thumping of the fetus. Jane liked to say that the baby must have Petra's long legs because it moved around like it was way too cramped for it.

Petra liked to say that the baby was restless, like Jane.

Then Petra remembered her conversation with Rafael, about Luisa, and Rose. It wasn't her business, she didn't want to talk about it especially in front of Jane, but she told Rafael she would.

"Luisa," she sighed, "we need to talk about something."

She then led Luisa out of the room, dreading this conversation, because it wasn't her business. She did not expect it to go well.

It didn't. Luisa was angry that Petra had told Rafael in the first place, and when Petra tried to tell her she didn't actually tell Rafael, that he figured it out, she wouldn't listen. She didn't care. Then Luisa pointed out it wasn't Petra's place to tell her this, to lecture her, which Petra agreed with.

Then, Luisa started crying, saying that Petra was right, but she loved Rose and can't say goodbye to her.

"And the sex is really good!" Luisa sobbed, now in Petra's arms.

"I'm sure it is," Petra said through clenched teeth. "But that can't be the only reason you're with her."

"It's not! I love her! And I know she's done awful things, but I really think she's changed."

Petra had nothing to say to that, because she hadn't seen Rose in awhile, so she had no idea. So she stood there, holding a crying Luisa. Eventually, Luisa stopped and promised Petra that she would have a frank conversation with Rose, then Rafael.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Luisa will be okay.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter may be the last one for this. That doesn't mean I won't write more with this story line though! Because I already love this baby.

Fortunately, the baby was healthy. Unfortunately, Jane was ordered to stay on bedrest until the the baby was born. Jane's blood pressure was now high and she was diagnosed with preeclampsia. Petra had insisted that Jane get induced, and while the doctor agreed, he also said that Jane's condition wasn't extreme, so waiting another week would likely be fine.

Rafael had to go out of town, so Petra had to rely on Jane's family for help with the kids, which was fine, but Jane wasn't the only one with a headache now.

Rogelio had gotten a part in a musical, so he liked to practice as often as he could, which included Petra's house. He also got the kids to help. Rogelio talking was loud enough, singing was worse, then add on loud singing children. Petra wanted to enjoy the family time, she really did, but her patience was wearing very thin.

Then Alba and Xiomara were arguing about something. Petra's Spanish was much better than it used to, but Alba was speaking so fast she couldn't keep up.

To make matters worse, Elsa was sick with something and was following Petra around the house. Elsa was the least clingy of their children. Petra was being very sympathetic to her daughter—she was sympathetic! But she had a low tolerance for whining.

“Mommy.” Elsa merely raised her arms for Petra to pick her up, which Petra did. But at some point, she had to do laundry.

“Elsa, sweetie, I need to put you down,” Petra said gently.

Elsa shook her head.

“Elsa, I need to put you down.”

“Nooo!” Elsa wailed. She sounded like her sister.

Petra had to forceably put her daughter down on the floor. This was a bad idea. For the first time ever, Elsa threw a tantrum. Her little face turned red as big, fat tears ran down her cheeks.

Of course everyone, except for Jane, ran into the room.

“What is it?” Xiomara asked, looking startled.

“Elsa is sick and she wanted me to hold her, but I had to put her down for laundry,” Petra explained loudly over her screaming daughter.

“Oh, that's not a good idea when a kid is sick. Jane said it can be traumatizing for kids this age,” Xiomara said.

“Yeah?” Petra said, her jaw clenching. Elsa was still crying.

“Yeah, something about ignoring their feelings or something,” Xiomara shrugged.

At that moment, Mateo and Anna started wrestling. It started off playful, but then hair was pulled and it escalated. A punch was thrown, hitting Mateo in the nose, then he kicked Anna. Now all three kids were crying. Four adults in the room and nobody seemed to be able to get the kids to stop crying.

Then it hit Petra, this was her life plus one more soon. Jane would be feeling better, but there was going to another child, another child who depended on them, who sometimes wouldn't listen to them, who blew things out of proportion.

A sob tore out of Petra, loudly enough that everyone—including the kids—looked at her.

“I- I can't,” Petra gasped before she bolted out of the room. 

She sat in car, but didn't go anywhere, her head resting on the steering wheel. She was terrified. Those fears she had back when the twins were born were coming back. What if her postpartum comes back? What if she's awkward around this baby like she was at the beginning of the twins' lives?

Was this a mistake, having a fourth baby? She knew she couldn't back out now, especially after what they went through to have this baby, but it was a lot.

There was a knock at the passenger door. It was Jane, still dressed in her pajamas. Petra wiped her eyes and nose before unlocking the door. Jane slipped inside.

“You should be in bed,” Petra said hoarsely.

“I'll be okay,” Jane said softly. “My mom told me what happened. Are you okay?”

Petra nodded and sniffed. Jane frowned at her.

“You're not. What is it?” Jane took Petra's hand and held it close to her. It was close to Jane's stomach, and Petra's eyes rested there. She could see the baby moving.

“I'm scared, Jane.”

Petra didn't need to say what she was scared of. Jane knew. 

Jane put Petra's hand on her stomach.

“I'm scared too, Petra. I mean, four kids? That's a lot. And it's not gonna be easy, but, you know...”

“I know, we made this decision and we have to live with it,” Petra sighed.

Jane laughed softly. “Well, yeah, but also, we're awesome parents.”

“You're an awesome parent,” Petra mumbled. Jane flicked her arm.

“Hey, stop that. You know what you give those kids? Stability. When they want something, I break down pretty easily. But you? You stand your ground. But, you're also sweet with them. There's a great balance. That makes you an awesome parent.”

Jane took Petra's chin between her fingers and made her look at her. “And remember, this baby is both of us. It's a very special baby. All our kids are gonna be so kickass, because they have us as parents. And remember, we're not alone. These kids also have awesome grandparents, a great-grandmother, and Rafael.”

Petra felt tears build up in her eyes again, but for a different reason.

“It's okay to feel scared, everyone gets scared, especially at having kids. I'm terrified, Petra.”

“Really?”

Jane scoffed. “I'd be a moron to not be scared.”

Petra half choked, half laughed. She leaned over and kissed Jane, then rested her forehead on Jane's.

“Thank you.”

“De nada,” Jane said, grinning.

A week later, Jane was induced. Both Petra and Jane were prepared to have the baby by the next day, but Jane's labor didn't really progress until two days later. In which time, they went home. Rafael took the kids, so they were alone for once.

“We better enjoy this while we can,” Jane said. She was sprawled out on the couch, her legs open.

Petra was beside her, rubbing her stomach. “How're you feeling?”

“It just feels like period cramps right now, like it has for the past day and a half,” Jane sighed.

“Here,” Petra said, twirling her finger. “Turn towards me.”

Jane did so and Petra put her hands on Jane's back, starting at her shoulders and gradually moving down to Jane's lower back. Jane moaned softly.

“Oh, Petra, that's awesome...”

“Is it helping?”

“I don't know, but it feels great.”

Petra continued this for a while. When Jane said she could take a break, Petra rested her head on Jane's back. 

“I can feel it moving around. It's ready to come out and I'm ready for it to come out,” Jane said. Petra reached around and put her hands on Jane's stomach. The baby was definitely moving. A lot.

Suddenly, Jane lurched forward and groaned loudly. 

“Yeah. Yeah, I hear you, kid,” Jane said through gritted teeth. 

“Should we go to the hospital?”

“I can still talk through the contractions, so not yet.”

Petra put her head back on Jane's back, listening to her fast heartbeats. Petra had been through this, but it was a hazy memory. She was in so much pain then. Petra wasn't there when Jane gave birth to Mateo, so she didn't know what it had been like for her. She seemed to remember it pretty well, or at least what she had learned.

As if Jane was reading her mind, she suddenly asked, “do you remember giving birth?”

Petra shook her head against Jane's back. “No. Not really.”

“You were a trooper, putting up with those pains. Giving birth to two babies without an epidural?”

Petra smiled. “Yeah, well, I am pretty tough.”

“You are,” Jane said without any irony.

Petra would have stayed like that, on Jane's back, but Jane needed to lie down. There wasn't much room on the couch so Petra had to lie down on the other side, her and Jane's legs tangled.

Petra wasm't asleep for long when she was woken up to a sharp kick in her upper thigh. Her first reaction was to be annoyed, but then she heard Jane groaning.

Petra sat right up. “Is it time?”

Jane nodded, now unable to speak. Petra not so gracefully rolled off the couch, popped up onto her feet, and helped Jane onto hers. It took a while to actually get Jane into the car; Jane had to keep stopping to catch her breath. Getting to the hospital didn't take long at all, because with each groan from Jane, the harder Petra pressed the gas pedal.

Once they were there, Petra helped Jane into a wheelchair and took out her phone.

“Rafael, Jane's going into real labor now. Let the kids know Mama will be okay and their new sibling will be here soon.”

“Got it. How's Jane?” Rafael asked.

On cue, a loud grunt tore through Jane.

“Right,” Rafael said. “I'll see you soon.”

Petra ended the call and called Xiomara next. Then they were showed to their room and Jane was dressed into her hospital gown.

“Do you want an epidural?” The nurse asked.

Jane looked at Petra, then nodded. “Please.”

“Not going natural?” Petra asked, helping Jane into her bed.

Jane's eyes rolled. “No.”

Petra laughed. She pulled up a chair and sat beside Jane's bed. “How're you feeling now?”

“As good as you can when you're pushing a baby out of you,” Jane said, smiling a little. “Petra, soon, we're gonna have another baby.”

“I know. I freaked out about it, remember?”

“I know, I know, but another baby, a little you, a little me.” Jane's eyes suddenly filled with tears. “I'm so excited.”

“I am too, Jane,” Petra said softly and truthfully.

Jane got the epidural soon after that, which was good because the contractions were rapidly building. Jane was at 5 centimeters. Then, she was still at five. She was at five for the next two hours.

Petra, remembering how she felt when she gave birth, was trying to not hover or bother Jane too much. At least Jane had an epidural, though. All Petra did was occasionally ask if Jane was okay and give her ice chips.

“Mateo took a while, too,” Jane said. “I'm not too concerned.”

Petra brushed a sweaty strand of hair from Jane's forehead. “Is that the epidural talking?”

Jane smiled dreamily. “Maybe.”

“Sounds like good stuff.”

“I'd give you some, but it's in my spine.”

It was nice to see Jane a nervous mess. She seemed completely unbothered that the baby was taking a long time to come. Petra was starting to worry. Was this what dad's felt like? Having your spouse going through this, and nothing you could do about what was happening?

Her mind was taken off it further when Xiomara, Alba, and Rogelio came into the room. Jane had told them to not rush, that everything was fine.

“Oh, Janey, how're you feeling?” Xiomara asked, sitting on the edge of the bed. She kissed her daughter's forehead. “How's my grandbaby?”

“I'm good. And the baby is good. I think.”

“You think? And you're not freaking out?”

Jane nodded.

“I'm just really excited,” she said, grinning broadly.

“I am too, sweetie,” Xiomara said softly, gently stroking Jane's forehead. 

“I cannot believe I am about to have my fourth grandchild,” Rogelio beamed.

Petra's heart flipped, as it did everytime the Villanueva's and Rogelio referred to the twins as their own grandchildren. It had been about four years and Petra did had trouble getting used to it.

Just then, Jane gasped and bared her teeth. Everyone was at her side in an instant.

“Janey, what is it?” Xiomara asked.

“Are you okay?” Petra took Jane's arm and held it tightly.

“Pressure,” Jane said through her teeth. “Really bad.”

Rogelio went and got the doctor, while Petra and the Villanueva women stood at Jane's side, trying to comfort her. The pressure seemed to get worse with each contraction and Jane's face was paling.

The doctor finally came in and examined Jane. Petra hated how serious he looked.

“The baby is turned,” he finally said. “Sideways. We can try to turn it, but if not, we'll have to do a C-section.”

“How do you turn it?” Petra asked, her voice sounding too weak.

“Manually, from the outside,” he told her, gesturing with his hands. “I won't lie, it's pretty painful.”

Before Petra (or any of her family) could say anything, Jane said: “Do it.”

“Janey? Are you sure?”

Jane nodded, her face even more pale. “The longer we wait, the body this baby is being pushed around. I want to try this first.”

Xiomara immediately took Jane's hand, and Petra, who was about to take Jane's other hand, saw Alba standing just behind her, so she stood back.

“You hold her hand, Alba,” Petra told her.

Alba frowned. “Estás seguro? Ella es su esposa, y esta es su bebé.¨

¨Yeah, but you´re her abuela.¨Petra picked up Jane´s hand and held it up. Alba took it, but Alba held out her other hand and smiled at Petra. Petra took Alba´s hand.

The doctor got to work. He placed both of his hands on Jane´s stomach and started pushing against it. Jane bit her lip, but a squeak escaped. Petra could see Jane´s hands turn white as she gripped her mother and grandmother´s hands.

Rogelio had stood beside Xiomara and was now holding her hand.

“Ow, Rogelio, easy. Jane's already squeezing my hand hard enough.”

“Sorry, Xiomara, but I hate seeing Jane in this much pain.”

Xiomara didn't argue more and turned back to Jane. Petra hated seeing Jane like this, but she could only imagine how her family felt, especially Xiomara and Alba, who had raised Jane.

It was when tears started streaming down Jane's face—and no progress seemed to be made—that Petra finally spoke up.

“Okay, Jane, I think you should go ahead with the C-section.”

Jane swallowed, then looked at the doctor. “She's right. I don't think this is working.”

The doctor removed his hands. “If you're ready then, Mrs. Villanueva, then we can prep you for surgery and get it done.”

Jane nodded, tears still running down her face. 

“C-sections are easy these days, Mrs. Villanueva. There's nothing to worry about.”

“What about the recovery time?” Xiomara asked.

“It does take longer, as it is with any surgery, but you're young and healthy, so you should be okay.”

Jane nodded again, her teeth worrying at her bottom lip. The doctor leaned out the door and called a nurse in, then whispered to her before she ran back out. A minute later she came back with a liquid of some kind.

“You need to drink this. It neutralizes your stomach acid. It's pretty chalky, just as a warning.” The nurse handed the cup to Jane, who started to drink it, made a face, but forced it down. She stuck out her tongue when it was done.

As all other preparations were made and Jane was brought to the operating room (and Petra was dressed in her scrubs) it was a blur. Petra was nervous, to put it simply. The only surgery she had was to have her appendix out a couple years ago, so she really wasn't sure what to expect. Jane, who had obviously been nervous early, seemed to have relaxed. Maybe it was the extra dose of epidural she got.

“Petra, it'll be okay,” Jane said after the curtain was pulled up over her chest. “They know what they're doing.”

“I know that,” Petra accidentally snapped. She adjusted her facemask. “Sorry. I know, I just...”

Jane took Petra's hand and smiled. “I know.”

Petra crouched down beside Jane's head, partially to be as close to Jane as she could, partially so she wouldn't accidentally look at the surgery. They had started and Jane's eyebrows were knitted together.

“Does it hurt?”

Jane shook her head. “No, but I feel... I don't know, but I feel something.”

Petra kissed Jane on the cheek and pressed her nose against Jane's temple. Jane grunted softly a couple times, but showed no signs of pain. It seemed to be taking too long, when it was probably only ten minutes.

There was a baby's cry.

“Here he is!” The doctor cried out.

Petra stood up and looked at her baby, her son. Her son. She had another son. She knew they were having a boy, but it was still exciting.

The nurse took him, weighed him, checked him down, and cleaned him up before passing him to Petra. He was pretty small and had a tuft of soft, brown hair on his head. He appeared to have Jane's nose, but his eyes were closed, so Petra couldn't tell what they looked like.

“Petra, I want to see him,” Jane said behind Petra. 

Petra silently turned around and gently placed the baby on Jane's chest. Jane gasped and tears flowed from her eyes again.

“Oh, he's so beautiful. Look at his little hands.”

The baby made a soft crying noise and curled up against Jane. Jane kissed his head and beamed up at Petra.

“Our son.”

“Our son,” Petra repeated. She touched her face and realized she was crying.

Jane ran her finger around one of his ears, then smiled. “He has your ears, I think.”

“Yeah?”

“All sticky-outy.”

Petra frowned. “This again. My ears don't stick out.”

Jane just smiled and kissed the baby again.

After Jane was stitched up and sent back to her room to recover, Petra brought her family in. She didn't tell them the sex yet, wanting to surprise them.

“Xiomara, Alba, Rogelio,” Petra started, blocking their view of the baby, “I'd like to introduce you to... our son.”

She picked him up and turned towards them. Xiomara gasped like Jane had and stepped forward.

“Oh, look at this little angel. May I?” After Petra nodded, Xiomara took him in her arms. “Ma, look at him. He is so...”

“Precioso,” Alba finished. She then said, in English, “Congratulations,” to Petra.

“Do you two have a name?” Rogelio asked, squeezing in behind Xiomara to peer at his new grandson. 

“We do,” Jane said. “Well, I have a first name. Petra gets to choose the middle name.”

“You go first, Jane,” Petra said.

Jane gestured to her mother to bring him over to her and took him in her arms. “Okay. This is Gabriel. Gabriel...”

Jane looked at Petra. Petra stood beside Jane and stroked the soft hair on his little head. “Gabriel Natalio Villanueva.”

Jane gaped slightly at Petra. “I thought you didn't want to use that name. I mean, Natalia, but you know, it's similar.”

Petra had thought a lot about it. Life was tough when she was Natalia. She had her mother, which was difficult enough, plus they didn't have a lot of money. When she came to America and became Petra Andel, she put her life as Natalia behind her. It was her past, not her future.

But then she realized, maybe she wasn't she had issues as Natalia, but she had issues as Petra too. The name was irrelevant. Natalia just represented one aspect of her life, and certainly an aspect she shouldn't be ashamed of.

She didn't want to be ashamed of who was she was, nor did she want her son, or any of her children, to be ashamed of who they were. She certainly knew what it was like to live with regrets.

Natalio was her way of representing that, as abstract as it may seem to be. Hopefully Gabriel would understand that one day.

“I moved past it,” Petra said simply.


End file.
